Guest Post from: The California Guy.
Damn…
But that’s not why I’m writing this: I want your thoughts on the larger issues surrounding all of this [with my comments thrown in to chum the water]…
Do we live in a more post-racial America, one different from our parents?
[I believe that the racial issues today are just as complex as they always have been, but that the way to see things and the strategies to move forward are very different from the ‘March on Washington’ days; I even believe they are different from the ‘Million Man March’ days. When we as Black people see our country as a static picture of 60's/70's marches, besides being blind to the new challenges and missing the new nuances for change, we become even more nihilistic in our outlook and poison our own souls and those around us. There are REAL issues regarding race in America, but they ain't just like the old ones...]
Did Dr. Gates overreact?
[How would you feel if after a 15-hour international flight and a stuck door, a police office knocked on you door and asked to see your ID because someone reported that a person had been seen breaking into your home? BUT how would you feel if you came to your home and found it ransacked, and a stranger told you they saw someone shaking your door and trying to open your windows, but they didn’t call the cops because they weren’t sure what to do and didn't want to be deemed 'racist?']
Did Sgt. James Crowley overreact?
[Although a middle-aged Black man talking about my mama would get me quite angry, I STILL don’t know how a person can be arrested for disturbing the peace in his/her own home.]
What’s up with President Obama’s ‘stupidly’ comment?
[Okay, I know our president is of African American culture and perspective; I SURELY would have said something just like what he said to my family and friends (and did so, in not so eloquent words). I am sure others who are not AA would have thought/said the same thing (and I know that there are many who see things differently). My ding against our dear President is that he needed to be a more prudent Black man in this situation, and kept his blessed mouth shut.]
Any other general racial commentary?
[Don’t go crazy in this section; your comments can be thoughtful, even controversial, but please not incendiary].”
-The California Guy
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
…feels weird to comment on my own blog but here goes…
I do believe the cop over-reacted and that his behavior could easily called stupid. Therefore, I’m not offended by what Obama said at all. However, as a leader, ahem, the most powerful leader in the world, using the word stupid to describe a whole police force was probably, well, sort of stupid.
I’m most offended by Crowley’s superiors & his police station who refuse an apology. It just feels absolutely crazy to me that we have to be all politically correct about police mistreatment of black men. It is a fact. Not a perception of black men, but a proven fact. And not only that, but it has been happening consistently for over 150 years dating back to when black men were routinely lynched by white men in power.
It’s depressing this countries selective memory about history. I mean, jeez, wasn’t it only about 60 years ago -in my black fathers generation- that black men had to wear a sign, “I AM a Man” & parade silently in protests just to get equal rights. Why does police brutality surprise anyone? Progress is happening, but it’s slow!
I believe, Gates was treated appalling and he had every right to be angry & annoyed. I hate that Obama had to go back & apologize for saying what was true: the cops makes mistakes…and racism is widespread amongst those of ANY profession. Crowley was straight up wrong.
-grace
I’m beginning to wrestle with how to ‘move the ball forward’ in terms of race an disagreement. When I first heard about the bear thing; I have to admit, I was 1) a bit jealous of being invited to the White House to have a drink with the President and 2) I also had a ‘aww…that’s my President’ moment in that I thought it was a cordial, good way to promote discussion.
I’m not naive to think we’re in a post-racial society (yet) given interactions I’ve seen with my Ethiopian daughter and heard about recently with other friends who’ve adopted. But, I think as believers in Jesus we can lead out of love and a desire to care for ‘the other’ and I think we’d all advance some stuff.
I’m with you Grace, I think it would have cost the Sgt. nothing to apologize and would have put feet to his words of being against racial profiling; instead I got the impression that he probably got upset at Gates yelling at him, it turned into an ego, he hurt me, situation and now the Sgt. is angry or hurt.
It’s amazing how painful and costly and powerful an apology is. Yes, I believe that an apology is the right thing to say/do, but sadly, I don’t think the Cambridge Police force has enough inner strength and humility to pull it off. In the eyes of many, it would be a sign of strength and not weakness, but in the eyes of a few powerful folks, they would be completely undermined and picked apart.
I wouldn’t be surprised, however, if that in a private conversation in a closed room, that some kind of off-the-record apology-like statement is spoken to the good Doctor. It might not come from the good Sgt, but it will come from someone.
Regarding the legitimacy of the arrest, Gates was arrested for behavior that occurred on his porch in view of the public, not within his own home. Having been in similar situations myself, I believe that the arrest was based solely upon Professor Gates behavior towards the police, not his race. Certainly there are racist police officers across the country, yet Sgt. Crowley is far from racist. He was selected by an African American police Lieutenant to become an instructor on racial profiling at the police academy. In 1993, Sgt. Crowley attempted to perform mouth to mouth resuscitation on Celtics star Reggie Lewis who died after collapsing during practice. Finally, the other officer at Professor Gate’s residence was Sgt. Leon Lashley, an African American police officer who said he supported Crowley’s decision to arrest Gates 100%.
While people cannot be arrested for “contempt of cop”, the charge of Disorderly Conduct is often used to arrest people who are being disrespectful and confrontational towards the police in a public setting. By the letter of the statute, Gate’s arrest was justified under Massachusetts law. However, case law has determined that much of the conduct covered in the statute is protected speech. Thus, prosecutors are reluctant to prosecute such cases; this is why the charges were dropped. For a good discussion of the statute and Massachusetts case law see: http://www.volokh.com/posts/1248465451.shtml.
I believe Sgt. Crowley and his partner would have arrested anyone (white or black) acting in such a manner. The police regularly encounter rude, abusive, and disrespectful people who challenge their authority. Consequently police officers become very jaded and may confront such persons through legal or illegal means. For a good discussion of this subcultural phenomenon see a scholarly article entitled “Asshole” (Van Maanen, 1995).
As a police supervisor, I know that the best course of action would have been to just walk away. However, I would have supported the decision of my officers who acted quite professionally (I have listened to the audio of their radio transmissions and read the Cambridge police report). Like President Obama, I don’t have all the facts and wasn’t present at the incident. However, my professional experience tells me that Professor Gates was arrested due to his behavior; from the perspective of the officers, race was an inconsequential variable.