Last week, prominent African-American studies scholar Henry Louis Gates, Jr. was arrested for disorderly conduct after police confronted him for trying to break into his own home. There are accusations of racial profiling. Harvard Law School professor Charles Olgetree is representing Gates. The media are all over the story; even TMZ is covering it (and picking up on “yo’ mama” jokes from the police report). We’ve dubbed it Gatesgate,.and we gave you a full write-up of the incident this morning.
Charles Ogletree has prepared a statement about the incident and released it to The Root, a website co-founded by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. Not surprisingly, his account sounds a bit different from the police report. Here’s an excerpt:
As Professor Gates followed the officer to his own front door, he was astonished to see several police officers gathered on his front porch. Professor Gates asked the officer’s colleagues for his name and badge number. As Professor Gates stepped onto his front porch, the officer who had been inside and who had examined his identification, said to him, “Thank you for accommodating my earlier request,” and then placed Professor Gates under arrest. He was handcuffed on his own front porch.
Professor Gates was taken to the Cambridge Police Station where he remained for approximately 4 hours before being released that evening.
No overt aggression, but apparently plenty of passive aggression from the officer.
Read in full at The Root.
UPDATE (12:30 p.m.): The AP reports that the disorderly conduct charge against Gates has been dropped:
The city of Cambridge issued a statement saying the arrest “was regrettable and unfortunate” and police and Gates agreed that dropping the charge was a just resolution.
“This incident should not be viewed as one that demeans the character and reputation of professor Gates or the character of the Cambridge Police Department,” the statement said.
Too late for that.
Lawyer’s Statement on the Arrest of Henry Louis Gates Jr. [The Root]
Charges dropped against black Harvard scholar [Associated Press]
WORD OF THE DAY: Gatesgate [Transracial]
Earlier: The Gatesgate Arrest Scandal: Harvard Law Prof Charles Ogletree to Represent
Firstymeister
Passive aggression = the term you use when you can find no police wrongdoing
Police and lawyer have completely different stories… thank goodness jesse jackson is swooping in to set everything straight
Neighbors apparently witnessed Gates’s conduct (according to reports). If so, then they will corroborate one side or the other.
Gates needs to take up a real cause. Cannabis should be legalized ASAP. This is a grave injustice. It grows wild and is less harmful then alcohol.
First to say African American studies should not be taught unless its counterpart White Suburban Studies is taught concurrently.
What was this guy thinking trying to break into his own home while black? He should have changed to white first.
Harvard is the SMU of the Northeast.
Professor GaTTTes
Hey, idiot commenters – read the two accounts. Gates claims he did show two forms of ID, while the police report denies that he did. Given these two conflicting accounts, it’s not possible to meaningfully determine what happened either way until more evidence or perhaps some corroboration by other officers or the driver who helped Gates open his door.
And being disrespectful of cops, without more, is not grounds for an arrest.
12 = Professor GaTTTes
Honestly, who gives a shit. The cops asked about someone who looked like they were breaking into a house. Even if the person who called thought that it was more likely that this was the case because the person was black it does not matter. Gates simply had to show ID, not be a dick, and get on with his life. Cops are dicks on most occasions like this, but that’s a fact of life. Being a dick back to them never gets you anywhere (whether you are white or black.) This is pure sensationalism.
And the charges have been dropped:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090721/ap_on_re_us/us_harvard_scholar_disorderly
Lawyer releases statement supportive of his client. Cue the breaking news guy.
“And being disrespectful of cops, without more, is not grounds for an arrest.”
In theory it should not be, reality is another thing altogether, regardless of a person’s race . . .
Even if we concede that the report is 100% accurate, the cop should have still just walked away.
Also, I find it highly unlikely that the cop was a racist. He was just doing his job. Gates was being mouthy. It annoyed the cop. He arrested Gates.
While I understand why the cop did what he did, he shouldn’t have done it. He was wrong to arrest him. Rather than racism, this is a case of abuse of police power. Terrible.
And, Gates behavior was awful. I think we have to remember though, Gates was born at a very different time from most of us commenting on this board. When he was born, separate was still considered equal, blacks and whites couldn’t marry, and people believed that it was a scientific fact that he was inferior.
Does this excuse his behavior? No. But I think we should remember that if your personal history with cops involved vivid memories of them turning fire hoses and wild dogs on little girls, your view of them might be a little different.
How is this news?
“Officers responded to the home Gates rents from Harvard after a woman reported seeing two black men trying to force open the front door.”
Who was the other guy?
“Officers responded to the home Gates rents from Harvard after a woman reported seeing two black men trying to force open the front door.”
Who was the other guy?
The charges have now been dropped.
4 – agreed with most. I would not say that by playing the race card he is showing to be a racist himself but agreed that cops could wrong anyone. (assuming that they were wrong here – need more facts). the key is to be respectful.
also th african american community has to stop playing the race card or sooner than later it will bite them back. this is clear as white people are getting sick of the reverse discrimination that is commonplace in usa
This has nothing to do with racism… it has to do with an idiot trying to rev up some cops.
But I’ll tell you what… cannabis is illegal b/c of racism. Because the primary users of cannabis sativa pre-1937 (pre-prohibition) were members of minority groups, when newspaper stories told of crime and insanity being caused by cannabis users the majority of persons linked it to Mexicans or blacks, and moreover most of these stories were of Mexicans or black persons.
The charges have now been dropped.
20 – The cab driver who was taking Gates home. Read the articles next time, they’re linked for a reason.
20 – it was his driver. His front door was broken, so he went in through the back door. The driver then helped him get the front door open so that he could bring Professor Gates’ luggage into the house. Professor Gates was returning home from the airport.
Charges are dropped:
http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=528587
The race card is an argument people use, without any justification for it, when they have no legitimate argument.
This guy was an idiot. Common sense should tell you not try to get high and might with the cops. Yelling “do you know how I am” and “yo’ mama” at cops is not smart.
27: Sorry to waste what I’m sure is precious, precious time. Douchebag.
Just another case of THE MAN tryin’ to keep a brotha down!
The race card is an argument people use, without any justification for it, when they have no legitimate argument.
This guy was an idiot. Common sense should tell you not try to get high and might with the cops. Yelling “do you know how I am” and “yo’ mama” at cops is not smart.
As with the Hooters Six, “the stigma lingers on.”
Mystal, clearly your father has anger management issues. Maybe you should talk to him.
Is Gates overrated?
22, 26 — yo’ momma has now been dropped.
The officer was black.
I have a black secretary and a white paralegal. They are both from Boston and they both fart constantly and even shart on occasaion.
I can see how Gates would get pissed off. He just came home from the airport only to deal with a bunch of cops showing up at his house. The cops were only doing their job when they showed up, but I’m sure what really set Gates off was when the one officer followed him into his home when he went to get his identification, refused to give him a name and badge number, and then seeing multiple police officers on his front porch when he returned to the front door with the first officer. Gates probably overreacted, but I can see how he would be pissed and I honestly think that an old white man would have been treated much differently under the circumstances. Gates probably was pissed off and making it clear in no uncertain terms. Next thing you know, the officers are hauling him off to jail to teach him a lesson. Sure Gates likely overreacted, but I understand where he was coming from. And the police need to have a little more restraint. Getting yelled at is part of the job description and you sure as heck don’t haul an old man off to jail because he is yelling at you on his own property.
Get ready for HLS domination in court and in the public (just like in the elections)!!!!!
This never would have happened in Chocolate City.
“They still call it the White House, but that is a temporary condition.”
Boston sounds like a shitty place to live. Girls farting everywhere, Mystal’s father running around breaking into houses, girls sharting all over people in bars. Sounds like a real paradise.
8 – white suburban studies is taught by default the rest of the time
40,
Wrong. If an old white man was yelling “do you know who I am?” and pulling out “yo’ momma” jokes, I’m pretty sure he would get arrested too.
Two black guys are standing on the front porch of a nice house in a white, affluent neighborhood. A local woman calls the cops and says that two black guys are breaking into a house as she speaks. The cops arrive, finding the black guys in the front yard. Surprise, surprise that the cops assumed that the black guys might be dirty. On black guy acts like an asshole, so the cops treat him like one by arresting him. What’s wrong with this…not a damn thing.
was the foreign kid from that 70’s show around? Perhaps this guy was just “battling for the respect of his hood”
46 – you could replace the word “black” with “white” in your little diatribe, and it would all still be correct. Heck, you could remove any reference to race in that, and it would still be correct. You seem to be missing the point that it doesn’t have anything to do with race, and GaTTTes is just playing the race card to try to cover the fact that he’s an idiot.
Ok, I am sick and tired of people questioning why is this news or not. Ok, I am not a minority (I am white), but I do have a BRAIN. This is definitely news, and you know why? This is clearly more evidence that the racism in America has not clearly subsided, but, rather, has been left in a state of inertia that is consquently rotting our country away from the inside out.
Let me make the case in point: A BLACK man, who owns a nice house is simply trying to get in, because of a common mistake of leaving his keys somewhere from which he has forgotten. Absolutely fair enough. But then, the police are called (???) and then then they ENTER his own home to question him as to whether he is a suspect of the alleged breaking an entering into the domicile of another. Coincidence? No, racism I contend. Also, after the initial confrontation, there is a dispute as to whether the Professor made hostile comments to the police officer. If you make a detailed examination of both the police report and the letter by Prof. Ogletree, you will seem some clear discrepancies.
Taking the information in the light most favorable to the moving party (Gates), as a court will eventually do, there is prima facie evidence here that the police abused their power. This shifts the burden of proof and production onto the police to establish that their behavior wasn’t criminal. I know the legalease makes some of your eyes roll, but it is there for a reason. The main point here, is that the police officer just couldn’t fathom how a black man could own an expensive piece of property in Boston, so he decided he was going to show him who was boss.
I feel it is incumbent on all people, to take a look in the mirror and ask yourself a simple question: Do you really look at the person you are judging? Or do you instead just see a race, or a color, or a religion? Because if you TRULY look at your opposite, you will see that there is so much humanity linking you with them, that you will understand that racism is horrible. The police officer didn’t really assess the situation, he instead just acted on stereotypes, and also prejudices. I believe it is crucial for those in power to ACT and take this and other similar examples to heart, and also as a warning signal that SOMETHING MUST CHANGE.
How many times and other instances are we willing to tolerate before we become fed up with this? I think if this had happened to you, regardless of your race, you would feel humiliated (i.e. arrested outside your own home, the press runs with it, and then the charges are dropped). I feel that as young law students and future lawyers, it is incumbent on us to take a lead in the matter, and end racism as we know it today.
So stop saying that this isn’t news. I have made the case clear enough.
Not suprised. This whole thing could have been avoided. There is such a thing as a college professor standard. Gates knew this too. If this had been Hank Gates, Suffolk law student who broke into his apartment, nobody would have cared. He would still be in jail and would have to explain it away on his bar admission. Sharpton would definitely not be there either. Gates knew he could say more than the average person. The cop should have recognized that as well.
I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that no person (regardless of race) has ever spoken disrespectfully and made a “yo’ momma” joke to a boston cop (with obvious asshole tendencies) in front of others without being arrested.
dave chapelle did a whole skit about just such an instance. “Oh my god johnson, the negro broke in and hung up pictures of his family everywhere”
49- I was wondering how long till Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton showed up to the party. Welcome.
51 = correct
49 = probably wrong (there’s no way I’m reading all that to find out)
Moral of this story = next time cops show up on a tip that someone is breaking and entering, they should just say, “Is this your place sir?” If the suspect says, “Why yes it is officer,” then the police should politely leave. (Particularly if the suspect happens to be a person of any racial or ethnic minority – so as to avoid the appearance of impropriety.) Brilliant. Just brilliant.
Just imagine that it was in fact a theif breaking in. Should the officers just have taken his word, and verbal abuse, that the place was his and left? In that case, Mr. Gates would currently be out all of his personal belongings. And would he now be suing the police for failing to protect a black man’s house?
I’m SHOCKED at most people’s reactions and thoughts concerning this incident. Here are my thoughts:
1. The cops were responding to a possible burglary. They asked for ID. ID was presented by the owner of the house. The guy was arrested. Race aside, this is NOT acceptable.
2. Personal manners aside, the cops are an arm of the state, and as such, must be held strictly accountable. It is irrelevant if posters on here, who were not arrested and detained for 4 hours, would have “played nice” with the cops. He, like everyone, has every right to display frustration, and demean the cops in any way he sees fit, short of causing a breach of the peace or engaging in disorderly conduct. CLEARLY, his behavior came close to neither.
3. Race so obviously played a factor in this it isn’t even funny. Now I’m not defending the fact that wealthy people are treated more nicely than are poor people, but it’s a simple fact. The cops were responding to a residence of affluence, and engaged a man who was in all likelilhood dressed accordingly, articulate, and intelligent. The cops were not dealing with a person dressed in timberland boots and wearing a bandana. As such, the cops should have immediately been on notice to the fact that, in all likelihood, this is the owner of the house. The ID should have confirmed this beyond all doubt. Again, I’m not saying it’s okay that wealthy people are treated more nicely, but given that the cops were dealing with an articulate and wealthy individual, it is clear that RACE was a factor since he was not afforded the standard preferential treatment that other WHITE men/women get.
4) Who are you apologetics? Seriously, this isn’t the worst thing to happen, but it is pretty unsettling, especially if you’re the one arrested and detained for 4 hours. Why so defensive of the cops? It kind of makes you wonder, hmm, WHAT IF the cops went to your father’s house and treated him like this, would you feel the same way? Would you say, “damn dad, why did you get mad after showing the cops your ID and they were illegally harassing you, why didn’t you just shuffle and step, and say yes’um and no sir?” OR would you be outraged that anyone, especially your father, was treated like that by an arm of the state?
This is absurd. To all you apologists: Imagine if this was your father or grandfather. Now question: would you react the same way?
-Every citizen should be concerned by the manner in which the police conducted themselves in this instance. Police get NO SLACK. They are an arm of the state, and as such, they hold great power, and have great duties to fulfill. If they cannot act according to the Constitution (fed and state), then they will be sued and put in their place.
Black people have trouble sometimes. These things happen.
I’m filing an IIED suit against Elie.
He recklessly displays his moobs and should be deterred from doing so.
the police dept should sue Harvard
I don’t know if racism was the primary driver here. Although Cambridge is still undergoing gentrification, it’s still a pretty diverse city.
If anything, this only goes to show that the Cambridge Police are inept. These keystone cops once failed to prevent a rape from occuring behind their own Green St. Police Station. I’ve seen them get into fist fights w/ each other (while drinking) at lunch at the Star and Plough.
So, having lived with this for a few years, I’m confident that the officers weren’t racist, rather, they were just idiots on a power-trip.
To the person who compared Cambridge to Boston, let me educate you – Planet Cambridge is an ENTIRELY different beast than its neighbor.
You mean I shouldn’t follow cops doing their jobs out into the street and yell at them about being racists pigs even after being asked to stop and a crowd gathers to watch me yell at the obviously racists pigs? Huh, learn something every day.
Now looky heeeeah Mistah Prosecutah. I demands a writ of hebeas corpus up in heeeeah.
49,
This is not news. Cops are assholes to people all the time, regardless of color. Especially when you disrespect them back.
Hell, the entire government is comprised of assholes. I once got arrested for possessing cannabis. *Cannabis*. The judiciary, legislative, *and* executive branches were all in on it. The plant has been harmlessly growing in the wild in this country for tens of thousands, if not millions, of years for Christ’s fucking sake.
Cannabis!
Also, you sometimes use the word “clearly” too much.
Clearly this wouldn’t have happened if the suspect was WHITEY Bulger.
Clearly this wouldn’t have happened if the suspect was WHITEY Bulger.
1) The police were completely justified in responding to a reported burglary and demanding ID from the man found inside the house.
2) It sounds like this Prof has a chip on his shoulder and goaded the officer.
3) it sounds like this officer overreacted and allowed himself to be goaded into escalating the situation.
4) If the officer is disciplined it should be because he abused his power by, effectively, arresting a suspect for being an asshole (not a crime as far as a know).
However, nothing in either version of what happens supports the claim that this was a racial incident. Personality conflict is often a better explanation than racism for one-on-one conflict between people of different races.
Easy on the cops, they don’t have their annual HOW TO BEFRIEND VERBALLY ABUSIVE SUSPECTS until mid August.
To all you cop defenders – listen up! Whom do you think is telling the truth here: The cops or a distinguished Harvard Law Professor? Plain and simple, if you defend the cops in this situation you are a racist. I feel sorry if you can’t see how race plays apart in all this.
If you blame the cops, you are CLEARLY racist.
56 – Nobody is excusing the behavior of the officers. It’s not within the scope of their authority to arrest people just because they’re being mouthy. What people are objecting to are the annoying suppositions that the arrest was based primarily on the race. As someone who’s seen white people arrested for much, much less than insulting an officer’s mother, I can tell you that jumping to racism is inappropriate.
Would the professor have been arrested if he was white? I have no idea. But don’t assume that the arrest was because of his race and not because he was acting like a self-righteous a-hole.
Regardless, his behavior doesn’t make the arrest ok, but then, nobody’s saying it is (just that it’s understandable). Enough with the strawmen.
Plain and simple–the cop did nothing wrong.
I love how Kashimir and the rest of the liberal elite staff of ATL have automatically sided with the Professor on this one. Guess it reaffirms that ATL is a gossip site staffed with gossipers rather than journalists actually committed to figuring out the truth behind something. Remember to get your news elsewhere before getting all worked up about articles on ATL.
Clearly the police wouldn’t have responded if the tipster had reported white burglars.
Just imagine the call:
Officer: “Did you say you say black people breaking into a house?”
Tipster: “No, it was a white person forcibly breaking open someone’s front door.”
Officer: A white person? Well it’s probably his house then.
Tipster: I don’t know. It was two full grown guys forcing a door. If they owned it wouldn’t they use a key, call a locksmith, or even a carpenter to fix the problem?
Officer: I’ve got more important things than to investigate crazy stories of white people committing crimes. Are you black? Trying to stir up trouble? You know making a false tip is a crime, BOY!
Easy way to make money if you’re a black Harvard student:
1. Break into someone’s house.
2. If the police arrives, show them your University ID (which does not say any addresses) and tell them you live there. Pull the race card if necessary, even if the policeman is black.
3. Profit!
I am glad the Cambridge Police are doing their job. This guy is an idiot.
HLS2L
I’m excusing the behavior of the cops as they CLEARLY had probably cause to arrest a man that was causing a public disturbance.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2009/07/charges_to_be_d.html
Better idea of what actually happened.
“I’ll speak with your mama outside.” Classy Gates. Real classy.
Moderator:
You and I must be from different generations. Given the other comments on this thread, I find it hard to believe that a quotation from the lyrics of “Chocolate City” from Parliament merits censorship. The song was a prescient celebration of the time when an African-American would be elected President of the United States.
Here is a link to the lyrics:
http://www.lyricsdownload.com/parliment-chocolate-city-lyrics.html
As the song says: “You don’t need the bullet when you’ve got yhe ballot.”
Not that I ever put much stock in police reports, it is possible that Gates, finding some police at his door when he got home, decided this would be worth a few headlines. And so he made sure to piss off the “60-credits-and-drop-out” cop who almost certainly has a chip on his own shoulder, and to get himself arrested so that he could remind people that racial issues still exist in the post-Obama America.
56 -
Exactly. It seems like most of the apologists here haven’t actually read the police report. When the cops arrived, Gates was already inside his own home! The cops then asked for ID, and Gates showed them his Harvard ID to confirm that the residence was his. The officer, meanwhile, took the liberty of calling for backup and calling the cops, which understandably only pissed off Gates more. He treated the officer disrespectfully (much as the officer had treated him disrespectfully _on his own property_) and then the cop decided to arrest him on a B.S. charge. The likelihood that an elderly white professor of comparable eminence (say, Harvey Mansfield or Dershowitz) at Harvard would have been treated that way, even after comparably rude behavior, is about zero percent.
Wow 69. You may not be a racist but you’re one hell of a classist! Because the guy is a Harvard History Professor (not a law professor — you evidently failed to read the article carefully) he must be telling the truth and the lowly blue collar police officers must be lying. Really? Socioeconomic success and academic distinction make you automatically more honest and moral than a working class cop?
People like you will be first against the wall when the revolution comes!
I just hope you all remember this happened in the BOSTON metro area and at HARVARD. And yet I know the next time something like this happens somewhere in the South or at a Southern school you people will all be like “geeze, why isn’t the South racial egalitarians like us up North?”
“who are you going to believe?? A cop or a Harvard professor????”
…are those my only choices?
Obviously the cops have no power or duty to investigate burglaries once the suspect successfully breaks into and enters the home. All burglars should just pretend that they live there when the cops show up.
People citing the police report as definitive are idiots. The charges were dropped meaning the DA (who earlier indicated they would NOT drop the charges) probably found evidence that the police report was inaccurate. If they had evidence to convict him they would have. From the comments here you can tell that public opinion would be on the prosecution’s side so they had no incentive to drop the charges unless the case was weak.
I would have loved to see this going to trial and to see one party skewered for inaccuracy. As it stands, the side that blinked is probably the guilty party.
I think this level of racism in Cambridge shows that it should be required under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act to obtain preclearance from the DOJ for all election changes.
81 – the cops didn’t know that he was _on his own property_ That what _they were there to investigate_. They also didn’t know he was a professor of _any eminence_ until he showed them _his ID_ can called them names. Why can’t you _follow a fact pattern._
69 = Roxana = racist
Also, google “who vs. whom”
87. Obviously the DA, who is a politician after all, dropped the charges to avoid being called a racist. Since you’re intelligent enough to string sentences together you must realize this. Therefore I have to assume your post is entirely disingenuous.
81 hit the nail on the head.
They should have roughed him up a little bit for being so disrespectful and immediately pulling the race card.
88 – the officer showed up to the house and an elderly black man came to the door. The man said it was his house and went to get his ID to prove it. If an elderly white man came to the door and said that it was his house, do you honestly think the police would have called backup and that the matter would have been handled the same?
Somebody need to break into this brother’s house and steal his shit and then see what he say about the po-lice.
How about the woman across the street calling in the “break in?” You mean to tell me she had no idea who her neighbors are, particularly when one of them is a preeminent Harvard scholar?
She’s probably the only true racist here. The cop was just a power-tripping a-hole who has a soft spot for his momma.
You kids are all so worked up about this. It’s a case of the cop being a ***hole and the professor being an a***hole culminating in FOUR HOURS of time down at the police station. Big deal. Gates feels the situation has been resolved with the charge being dropped, as do the police. Maybe it was a case of everybody getting a little too excited and nothing more.
89 -
Right. They went to investigate, and Gated showed them his Harvard ID, proving that he was the resident of the property. He was already inside when the cops arrived. They completed their investigation at that moment, and they should have apologized to Prof. Gates for disturbing him at his residence on the basis of a mistaken call. Understandably, he was upset at them for being disrespectful to him _in his own home_. Again, if Harvey Mansfield had dine the same thing there’s no way he would have been arrested.
This isn’t too difficult. The cops arrested him after they knew he was a Harvard bigwig who was legally in his own home. Again, I’ll spell it out for you: never would have happened to his white equivalent (not some tank-top-wearing white trash dude but rather a bowtie-sporting world class scholar with a cane in his sunset years who informed the police of his high-level position at Harvard University and proved that he was legally in his own house).
89 -
Right. They went to investigate, and Gated showed them his Harvard ID, proving that he was the resident of the property. He was already inside when the cops arrived. They completed their investigation at that moment, and they should have apologized to Prof. Gates for disturbing him at his residence on the basis of a mistaken call. Understandably, he was upset at them for being disrespectful to him _in his own home_. Again, if Harvey Mansfield had dine the same thing there’s no way he would have been arrested.
This isn’t too difficult. The cops arrested him after they knew he was a Harvard bigwig who was legally in his own home. Again, I’ll spell it out for you: never would have happened to his white equivalent (not some tank-top-wearing white trash dude but rather a bowtie-sporting world class scholar with a cane in his sunset years who informed the police of his high-level position at Harvard University and proved that he was legally in his own house).
Kashlobster ….. pinch pinch….
>-@-<
I think Gates just forgot to make his “protection” payment to the drunk McCops of the CPD. I saw Gangs of New York and know how those Irish are when they get power.
And I was in Centerfolds Boston last night and not one of the girls sharted in my face while giving me a lap dance. I say thumbs up to Boston strippers.
The moment Gates showed ID, the cops should have been gone. Forget that Gates was being an ass – it was his own house, and he proved it.
If that ever happens to me, I’ll shoot the motherfucker. Right between the eyes.
97 – The white professor with bowtie and cane probably wouldn’t respond to the police asking him to speak outside with “I’ll speak with your mama outside.”
And as much as I don’t think this is racism, the Cambridge Police are a bunch of cowboys. They pull over bicyclists for riding through red lights. Seriously.
95 – Are you fucking retarded? No one outside of academia knows this guy. He teaches African American studies. It’s not like he teaches anything important that people outside of academia would care about or invest time in.
Gates was clearly having a bad day after being shat on by a Massachusetts girl and his wallet and keys stolen.
83 – You’re an idiot – Boston is EASILY the most racist city in the country. While also being one of the most liberal. Go figure.
This is great. Cops need to be able to take a bit of talkback without resorting to fraudulent arrests.
94- well said. According to the police report the front door could not be secured because of a prior break in.
Maybe I missed this, but can someone clarify whether the Harvard ID has his address on it? Seems like a pretty important fact.
103 – Hilarious
105 – You’re the idiot. I’ve lived in Boston / Cambridge for 7 years and have found it to be one of the most accepting and equal cities I’ve ever been in. Try Los Angeles, or the bible belt before talking about racism in Boston.
I should probably know the answer to this, but does Harvard have a law school and, if so, is it accredited by the ABA?
108 – No, no address
Harvard UniversiTTTy
108, 111 he also showed his mass driver’s license
The charges were dropped because the DA has better things to do than go to war with HLS over a stupid disorderly conduct charge. Plain and simple. It doesn’t really indicate one way or the other what actually happened.
Having seen Prof. Gates, it would not surprise me if he went the “do you know who you’re dealing with” route. Not that the cops didn’t take it too far, but he’s still an ass that I have no sympathy for.
the only reason anyone ever went to harvard is because the were dinged at yale
49- If you are a troll, congrats, you are the best.
If not, I am judging you based upon your grammar, writing style, use of punctuation, and paintfully humorous attempt to apply legal principles you clearly do not grasp to support your viewpoint.
“The likelihood that an elderly white professor of comparable eminence (say, Harvey Mansfield or Dershowitz) at Harvard would have been treated that way, even after comparably rude behavior, is about zero percent”
Precisely. Moreover, the neighbor would likely have recognized his or her neighbor rather than conflating him with every other black guy off the street. The issue isn’t that Gates was a dick it’s that this would never, ever happen to a white guy in the same position.
Why are black people always so angry?
Gates was dressed in leather shoes and a blue blazer. The driver was in a black uniform. Three large suitcases were next to the front door as the two men wrestled with it for 15 minutes. This is what the female caller must have seen when she decided that she was likely witnessing a robbery taking place. This is in Massachusetts, folks.
Someone needs to force that dipshit cop to apologize.
115
This is the correct motorcycle.
if this was a white person this would be a non-story. Even from the suspect’s account it sounds like the cop for curteous and professional, which is much more than I can say in my dealings with police. Why is this guy entitled to more respect simply b/c he’s black
119 here. The female caller (whose name is available on the internet) comes out looking the worst here. She describes Gates and his driver (who is of Moroccan descent) as “two black men wearing backpacks.”
I swear to God if that cop apologizes I am going to riot. WHITE RIOT!
122, the cop refused to give his name and badge number despite being asked numerous times. I’d hardly call that courteous, much less professional.
123—Have you ever been to Morocco? Apparently not. Some Moroccans are ostensibly black. i highly doubt anyone would be able to tell the difference.. For instance, can you tell the difference between an Ecuadorian and a Peruvian? Enough said.
There are too many in-bred, flip-flop in the winter wearing hillbillies on this blog. This is why reverse discrimination claims are so laughable and Ricci is going to be reversed faster than you can say, “Heidi and Spencer.” Being denied a promotion at work is not equivalent to being arrested and detained for four hours by white cops for breaking and entering after you have provided two forms of ID. Gates’ white neighbor has probably waived and said hello to him a dozen times, but at night all Black people look alike. Ricci loses an extra 10k per year while Gates (older, esteemed, and better educated) could have lost his freedom (and did for four hours) and yet this is all lumped together under the same category of “discrimination.” Absurd. Whites are so priviledged they can’t even distinguish between “harrassment” and “demotion.”
126 – there is a huge difference between Moroccan and sub-Sahara African. But I guess if a suitcase = backpack, then I guess I’m asking too much here.
119/123
This bears a striking resemblance to a case of police misconduct in France involving a Harvard Professor of Symbology and Religious Iconology named Robert Langdon. The real story behind the cases of Professors Langdon and Gates isn’t racial profiling, it’s a Church so dedicated to a false dogma that it will stop at nothing to suppress contrary truths.
Tell the world!
Maybe black people should stop glorifying drug dealing, gang banging, and pimpin’ if they want society to see them as law abiding.
People who think police reports are accurate obviously don’t have much experience with police reports.
When I worked in criminal defense, there was a statement in a police report that made the accusing witnesses’ evidence against the defendant look WEAKER than it actually was. Bummer for my client, the defendant, when the witness corrected the report after we questioned him.
When I (white female, btw) filed a police report after receiving a threatening phone call, and told the officer that (1) I had, as part of a postconviction project, worked on numerous rape and homicide cases, and often written introductory letters to inmates who were subsequently rejected by my employer and subsequently paroled, and I offered them the contact info. for my former employer and (2) I was presently working on a DV TRO case, and guess what made it into the report? The TRO. Not the multiple paroled rapists and the (I think one) paroled murderer. I shit you not.
Possible rapists after me? Doesn’t warrant a mention. But a TRO–now that’s important. Idiots.
129, so is Mariah Carey black? What about Barack Obama?
133,
She could have said dark skinned. She chose to say black (not that there’s anything wrong with being black). It just shows that in her mind black = criminal. Now don’t get uppity.
why didn’t he just call a locksmith or Harvard housing? I met Gates and he was pleasant (even though he did go to law school for a year) and this doesn’t reflect his best judgment. He made a mistake and compounded it by claiming to be the victim of discrimination. I hope this causes people to re-evaluate their positions on the role of racism in this nation.
Moroccans are Arabs, you idiots.
135 — he was on his way to meet his family for vacation.
135,
That makes no sense. He went in through the back door, and tried to get the front door open so he could get his luggage in. Choosing to lean on a jammed door isn’t some kind of crime. That kind of second guessing is ridiculous. B/c what, everyone is supposed to know leaning on your front door = getting arrested?
105,
You are the idiot as you missed my obvious point — Boston (and other northern cities like NYC, Philadelphia, etc) have racism problems. And yet whenever there is something racist at UVa or Duke etc everyone acts like their part of the country is immune from racism. Just wait, something will happen at some Southern school and the people from Harvard etc on here will be arguing that nothing racist ever happens in their neck of the woods.
90,
Yes my post was disingenuous. What is wrong with you people? Obviously my point was that there is racism all across this country and it’s no longer the case (if it ever was) that it’s predominately in the South. Hence Section 5 of the VRA is pretty outdated. And yet when people were discussing the recent Supreme Court case on Sec. 5 there were a bunch of people wondering why Roberts et al thought it was outdated to have only a few states under the ambit of Section 5 as if nothing had changed since 1965.
Why does everyone pick on the Irish?
Masshole Copper was was Irish, right? Oh no. Someone beat me with a night stick.
Gates didn’t get arrested for being black in America. He got arrested for mouthing off to a cop in America.
I’m sure the jury will take pity on the poor oppressed Harvard law prof. publicity hound, and will just love his harvard law professor publicity hound lawyer.
136, I guess that’s why we never celebrate the achievements of north Africans, like the Egyptians, during Black History Month, right?
I tan up well and come from a relatively oppressed group of people. I must be Black. Yes! That explains my love for Young Jeezy baby!
“My prezident is black, my Lambo is blue, and I be goddamned if Mr. Gates ain’t too if he keep talkin that crazy shit to the fuzz!”
“if this was a white person this would be a non-story”
If this was a white person the whole thing wouldn’t have transpired.
56 and 97 nailed it
145 – you say that as if it is fact. As a hypothetical, it is unprovable, and probably not even true. Therefore, it is invalid. Thanks.
#127 is the dumbest post out of the first 146. Congratulations.
I especially can’t wait until Ricci is “reversed” by the Super-Duper Supreme Court of the United States. When do you think oral argument will be? Oh, that’s right, I forgot, the judges on that court just read the minds of the parties telepathically, and dispense with the need for any “oral” argument.
F ME. I meant #128, not #127.
–#148 (second dumbest post on here)
I’m white and if some idiot cop was INSIDE my house giving me a hard time after I’ve shown him identification, I sure as hell was cuss him out today.
Anyone defending that idiot cop is an idiot himself.
You know what they say about Sicilians, don’t you?
Christopher Walken
As Howard Stern once said, “Kill, kill, kill the white man. Kill him until he is dead.”
Want evidence of racism in America? Kobe Bryant is accused of raping a white woman and it is the biggest news in the country for months. Ben Roethlisberger is accused of raping a woman and the story isn’t even mentioned on the front page of ESPN and isn’t one of the main stories on any major news outlet.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090721/ap_on_sp_fo_ne/fbn_roethlisberger_lawsuit;_ylt=AhD5a4d68xbAbw0oos4KxrcLMxIF;_ylu=X3oDMTJyMnRiajFzBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMDkwNzIxL2Zibl9yb2V0aGxpc2Jlcmdlcl9sYXdzdWl0BGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawNzdGVlbGVyc3JvZXQ-
@153 – So?
So you don’t think that has anything to do with skin color? White folk automatically thought Kobe was a rapist because he was black and she was white. Turns out the chick takes his money and goes and buys herself implants. The Roethlisberger story, by contrast, isn’t even treated as news. I guarantee you that when it is brought up people will talk about how her story is not credible.
@155 You’re an idiot. Every white person I talked to thought Kobe was not guilty. So not only do you reveal your own racism by stereotyping white people, but it is not even close to being accurate. I hope you’re not a law student/lawyer because you’d be a lousy one with such lazy thinking.
That’s why it was on the news every night for months straight, whereas the Roethlisberger thing gets buried? It is easy for people to say they didn’t think he did it after everything passed, but when it first came to light a lot of people jumped to conclusions.
Kobe wasn’t guilty. You think he needs to rape some ugly front desk chich with that massive schlong? Get real. Gates, on the contrary, is a troll.
I think 155 meant O.J. And, by the way 155, O.J. WAS guilty.
Was Big Ben accused of raping a black woman? If not, STFU. Apples and Oranges.
This Big Ben claim is as bullshit as was the Kobe bullshit. The woman went straight to a civil claim without ever contacting the cops. She’s a shakedown artist.
Anyone who thinks that there is any fault here on the police is an idiot. What happened is very clear. The officer was investigating a burglary report, and Gates became belligerent for no reason. When he asked the officer his name and badge number, he continued to shout so that he wouldn’t hear the answer, and then claimed that the officer “refused.” Did any of you read the police report?
Maybe the Big Ben claim is buried, but the Duke lacrosse team was on the front page for months…
This cop should be praised for the action he took. Nobody likes to be disrespected and he took a stand. Also, he got a 58-year-old menace to society off the streets. It’s arrests like these that make me feel safer as a citizen. I wish more cops would be this brave.
164, you’re an idiot. Have you read the report?
This is the most absurd non-story I’ve ever heard of. Guy obviously has it stuck in his thick skull that everyone is out to get him, just because he’s black. Give me a break.
Whoever posted that he got arrested for mouthing off, kudos. This guy has no one to blame but himself. What a moron. To think kids actually sign up to take classes from this nitwit.
Oh, and for the record, check the story at the NY Post. They have a nice picture of him being hauled off. What’s that, a black police officer? Black-on-black racism, I guess.
165:
Yes. The actions taken by this officer were heroic. I mean, we’ve got firefighters going into burning homes to save babies, we’ve got detectives following every lead to solve what looks like impossible crimes, we’ve got officers shot in the line of duty and then we’ve got this guy who arrested this vicious criminal.
165:
Yes. The actions taken by this officer were heroic. I mean, we’ve got firefighters going into burning homes to save babies, we’ve got detectives following every lead to solve what looks like impossible crimes, we’ve got officers shot in the line of duty and then we’ve got this guy who arrested this vicious criminal.
–164
No one is arguing that he is a vicious criminal. But he followed the officer to the street and started screaming and disturbing the peace. That is textbook disorderly conduct, and the officer was right to arrest him for it.
169:
I agree. I’ll sleep better tonight knowing that there are brave officers like this getting people like this off the streets.
170, you’re an idiot. Please shoot yourself.
171:
Careful. You’re coming awfully close to inciting violence. I’m going to call this heroic officer to arrest you.
169–
It may be textbook “disorderly conduct.” But an arrest did not have to be made. Have you ever heard of discretion. I bet you perform five acts a day that techincally violate the law and for which you could be arrested if you encountered an asshole cop.
The account on Gates website is ridiculous unless we’re to believe the cops arrested him for absolutely nothing. Of course he talked back and the fact that he’s now lying through ommission on his website shows that he has little character.
Lay off of Mystal everyone! I’m white and its starting to piss me off. WTF did he do to deserve the shit you’re dishing?
What has happened to this site? Either people are trying to be cute and funny, or it is infested with true- believing Federalist Society/White Supremacist types. Is there any way we can fumigate these right wing nuts off of this site?
What has happened to this site? Either people are trying to be cute and funny, or it is infested with true- believing Federalist Society/White Supremacist types. Is there any way we can fumigate these right wing nuts from this site?
Not all Moroccans (or North Africans) are Arabs. Before the Arabs took over North Africa, there were native Africans (although not all black, but people native to the continent) living there. For example, I am Libyan and I do not consider myself an Arab — I come from a tribe which is native to the continent of Africa, which is not the same as the Arabs. My family does not speak Arabic as its first language. In fact, to be honest, some of us native North Africans do not particularly like the Arabs who have taken over North Africa. Although Arabic culture is dominant in North Africa — many North Africans are not Arabs. This is true in just about every North African country.
Having said that, many native north africans are not black either. They are Africans, however.
But, there are Moroccans (Libyans too) that would be classified as blacks racially, as in resembling Africans from the subsaharan part of the continent.
177 – i couldn’t agree more. it’s shocking how many racist, fascist misogynist posts there are on here (not just this article, but on the whole site)….kinda goes against the stereotypical liberal lawyer prototype…if we don’t keep posting they’ll take it over… sad thing is i am serious…
Not to mention how many posts clearly evidence some SERIOUS psychological issues. Wouldn’t want to be their client
can we please put an end to the “TTT” thing? it is so f*ing old, unoriginal and parochial. let’s move ON.
179 – WTF are you talking about? Just because you don’t like the arguments people make doesn’t make them facists. There are a handful of douchebags on this site (of all political stripes). Most people are simply pointing out the obvious – that mouthing off to the police is a really good way to get arrested, no matter what your skin color is.
Don’t believe me? Venture out of whatever fishbowl you grew up in, come down to Chicago, find the nearest cop and start telling them what you really think of them. Please give us an update on the hilarity that ensues.
I’m a minority HLS grad. Cambridge police were always responsive and VERY easy to deal with compared to where I lived prior to coming here.
Where I came from, I was victim of both an attempted robbery and an actual robbery that cleaned my house out. The first time thanked God that the neighbors saw two white guys breaking into our back too and called the cops.
The second time nobody saw or called. The cops took an hour to arrive – yelled at ME and left evidence at the scene.
In sum, I can’t sufficiently emphasize how grateful I am when neighbors call the cops when something looks fishy- especially a forcible entry by two men with backpacks. It has been said that Harvard IDs say nothing about one’s address. His behavior was and continues to be absurd. They do shame to their professed causes by perpetuating this ridiculous crusade.
183, I agree with you on one point.
It seems clear that the Cambridge cops need to adjust their racial profiling skills because everyone knows the Cambridge criminals are all white-trash townies (oh wait, that describes the cops too…go figure).
And 76, you’re a douche. The rest of your class is embarrassed to go to school with you, but it’s ok because you will make a similar slip this or next summer and be blacklisted from BigLaw, government, and public interest. Plus, I’m gonna enjoy lighting your ass up in flag football this fall…
- white HLS 2L
Let freedom ring. And when this happens, and when we allow freedom ring—when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God’s children—black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, Cambridge police officers and overpaid Harvard Black Studies professors—will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual: “Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last from race baiting non-stories!
the arrest did not take place in the street. it was on the guy’s porch. second, i can mouth off to a cop all i want IN MY OWN HOME. why did the cop bait Gates to go outside then? the fascism here is really sickening.
183 get your facts straight. there were no backpacks and Gates showed his Mass driver’s id, which has the address.
Everything to the right of Kim Jong Il is probably “fascist” to you 186
187 – Get your facts straight. The person who called it into the police said they had backpacks (see comment 123). The police didn’t know otherwise until they got there.
Wrong 186, it was on the street. Read the damn report.
182 — think before you react.
why assume that what i am complaining about people making arguments? i have NO problem with that. where did you read that in my post?
but when people are saying things that have no logical foundation, and are purely based in some kind of hatred for/alliance with a TYPE of person, well you and i both should have a problem with that. (e.g. 8, 63, 70, 92 and 164 if it wasn’t a joke and in addition to this race sh*t, other comments slamming women, e.g. 100 here, but more in other articles)
– 179
This professor, with a Napolianic complex, clearly verbally abused the poor cop (although it’s hard for me to feel bad for cops… ). If it was me (white male) in NY, I’d be locked up facing felony charges, prosecutors wouldn’t even be thinking about this until the morning of the trial
This black professor clearly has a sense of entitlement and no body sees anything wrong with this. Just another one of BHO’s buddies, along with Rev Wright and the black panthers . This is almost as bad as 5 black thugs in Jena brutally beating up a white kid and then the city dropping the charges and even apologizing
Most racists in this country are blacks.
Profiling, not just racial profiling, is the take-away from this incident, and whether or not ANY President should be making comments on a local matter, particularly where racial implications are a part of the action.
Obama may have been elected, in part, as an affirmative action president, just as Gates may have been hired at Harvard, in part, as an affirmative action professor – but at national level politics, how much weight is any President allowed to bring to national attitudes and otherwise local events?
Are Presidents free to exert official pressure upon local business, governments, organizations, politics, or is the very instance of recognition an attempt to “make and record history” within the sphere of the White House aura?
In other words, to what extent can, or should, a President be allowed to make history by the recording of any involvement in an action that will be debated, publicized, broadcast, etc. – i.e., judgment in the use of the public stage and the highest national pulpit?
Does it not degrade the office to do so in a manner in which it was done – on this issue?
Hey Elie, looks like you got some splannin to do : http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/07/27/gates_caller_didnt_cite_race_police_say/
Are you finally going to admit you were wrong?
Have you left no sense of decency?