Obama calls police officer who arrested Gates

Whoop de doo!!

Looks like he has learned, don't discuss race, police profiling and gays, its a tempest that will get you in trouble!

This is a sad case but as Obama said, a teachable moment for the American People.

The police have simple power. Just law gives them legitimate authority, but not the right to act unjustly.

On the other hand, it is foolish even stupid to out-right taunt "power". Power can turn legitimate authority into illegitimate authority, and people, even the first black president of the US can be drawn into the storm and get hurt because of it.

The police force was correct to drop the charges and I hope Prof. Gates is even more wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove because of it.

They should meet and have the reconciliation documented. Save our time and energy for the continued struggle of justice as opposed to convenient distraction.

Dear Dr. Gates, You are not Rosa Parks And when you went to jail it was not cuz you're dark You'd shown a policeman that you could be tough And did not like what happened when he'd had enough The way this man saw it he was just doin work And you're supposed be smart but you called him a jerk You called him a racist and that was real bold I bet he smiled big when you crossed the threshold You can't make 5-0 out to be like a coward They ALWAYS gone show you who got the real power If you wanna bitch take your fight to the hood Where brothas go to jail if they happen to look good Where there's a big gaping hole in the achievement gap And the local officials DO NOT GIVE A CRAP You're on CNN acting like Rodney King And cuz YOU went to jail freedom finally gone ring? You teach up at Harvard and live like The Hills While all the real victims got problems and bills I'm sorry but I'm gettin tired of your noise You almost as bougie as Dr. DuBois But you're Dr. Gates and you not even dark So stop walkin round like the new Rosa Parks With love and ever lasting respect, Gary Brice

It could have been the start of an open debate on why the black community fears the police to the point some flip out over minor incidents, but, alas its now an issue that brings up that issue that so many seem to think does not exist, racism, and, many whites are now saying Obama is the 'black' president for saying an injustice may have been done, this is turning into a major political liability as millions still say racism was eradicated 40 years ago. Oh well, life in the new color blind society.

Crackers go away

Has anyone else begun to notice the great number of anti-black posters who have begun to invade this board? And they clearly do not come here to engage in a constructive conversation but a DESTRUCTIVE one, some even leveling the "N" word against blacks and calling blacks "whiny bitches," trashing Obama and Henry Gates, and defending the police and whites in general in highly condescending tones (e.g., "let a white man break it down for you," "time to stop blaming whites for racism," "police have to put up with enough crap from blacks," etc.). A difference of opinion is one thing (and Daily Voice, like any forum, should be open to ALL voices, not just black ones) but it's quite obvious that's not what these posters are here for; they are just racists and right-wingers looking to start trouble on a predominantly black message board and need to be removed.

On the 20th Anniversary of Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" what's the teachable moment here? What we witnessed was the most unlikely character to throw the garbage can thought he could get away with it. President Obama foolishly went along with the story and didn't have all the facts and he showed a bias. What's the lesson? Cooperate and graduate. Don't talk about nobody's "Mama." I got it, I'm gone. You can't get analysis like this in the Black or White community. Just be thankful.

After initially making the mistake of calling the policeman stupid, president Obama got it right. He pointed out that probably both the policeman and professor Gates over-reacted and he has also taken reasonable steps to calm the matter down. Everyone makes mistakes, and it is greatly to Obama's credit that he admitted his mistake. Most politicians would not admit making such a mistake.

It is not hard to understand why professor Gates may have over-reacted. There is a history of the harassment of blacks by the police and probably the professor was very tired from his long trip. Added to that was the problem with the door, so it is quite understandable that the combination would have made the professor somewhat irritable. That, coupled with a policeman who probably was accustomed to having backs bow to him created a situation that was almost certain to blow up.

Some good may come of this, if it makes more whites aware of the issue of police harassment of blacks, "driving while black," etc. Also, the police should learn that their effectiveness is undermined when they rub the public the wrong way since for maximum effectiveness, the police need the support of the public.

FRE, it will not make whites more aware, DWB has been an issue that comes up in the news almost monthly and they know it happens, and, all whites have to say is the police are great and just doing thier jobs, they could care less about the harassment as long as it gets more black men in jail, keep it real now, the, sick irrational fear of black men is why the abuse of color is allowed by this country.

FRE and Jon: You both have valid points. Although race relations are constantly improving in this country, racism is still so ingrained that our President cannot even speak on the subject without receiving tremendous backlash. As such, blog posting will not change anyone’s preconceived notions about the Gates incident. Personally, I thought President Obama was correct in his original comments. My family has always been taught never to start any trouble, but once trouble starts never back down, unless it is prudent to save your rage to fight another day.

Anyone who thinks whites will "learn" from this is kidding him or herself. If you don't believe me, just check the message boards at NYT, Boston Herald, etc. and all you will see are postings by white people proclaiming Gates to be the devil and Crowley (and by extension all police) an innocent victim of us evil blacks pulling the race card again to get one of our own out of trouble. And they're calling Obama, even after his backtracking, everything but a child of God (as my mama used to say). ABC News also just reported a few minutes ago that signs have been tacked up outside of Gates' house calling him a "racist" and saying he "played the race card." No, this isn't going to be over anytime soon and my biggest fear is that Obama's "stupid" comment, though in my opinion honest and deserved, may very well have been the fork in the side of his presidency. White people are never going to let him forget it (and Rush and the Rethugs will be working overtime to make sure white folks never forget it either).

If we choose to go revisit that road again that had black folks on one side and white folk on the other side after the OJ Simpson case we are truly on a path a certain destruction as a country. The President made a comment that I for one agree with. Now let's use this opportunity to pull off those scabs of racisim and bring the truism out in the open. We have all been tainted by the racism in America. It has hurt everyone to the point of no return unless we turn it around as Americans. Just judging the actions of the last few days, we're still basically an uncivilized society full of fears when others are different. Yes, everyone is acting stupidly and the talking heads are keeping stupidity alive to justify their high paying dirty little jobs, but somebody's got to do it.

Will, You are making the mistake of assuming that all of us whites are the same, or at least incapable of changing. I can assure you that neither is correct. Moreover, although arguing with someone may not change his mind immediately, it can easily have a delayed effect as he thinks it over for days, weeks, and months.

My parents were very racist but I saw them change considerably over the years. Even that horrible governor, Wallace, turned 180 degrees eventually; it does happen! Of course, some people will never change, but most are capable of change even if it takes a long time.

Back when I was a 20 year old kid in Minneapolis, I was stopped by the police in a very unnerving manner; it was about midnight. A police car forced me to the curb, and the 2 policemen, AT GUNPOINT, ordered me and my passenger out of my car. They frisked us for weapons and searched the car. Of course they found nothing because there was nothing to find. They did not even apologize or explain why they had done that. Naturally both of us were very angry and upset. So, I can well understand that people who experience that regularly will be strongly affected by it.

Regarding not backing down, I was stopped by a policeman about 5 years ago for driving 10 mph below the speed limit in the left lane of a city street. The car ahead of me was driving 10 mph below the speed limit. The reason I didn't pass him on the right was that I was looking for the street on which I wanted to turn left and didn't want to pass the slowpoke only to have to slow down immediately to turn. Anyway, I told the policeman exactly what I thought. When he told me that he had his video camera running and threatened to take me to court, I practically invited him to and said that I was glad that he had his camera running. Eventually, he realized that he had made a mistake and told me that I'd be getting a ticket in the mail; of course, I never did. My age (I was 66 at the time), the fact that I was dressed to the 9s (I was on my way to church) and the fact that I had a map opened on the passenger seat probably helped. Being white was probably an advantage too, even though it shouldn't matter.

So, I do know what it's like to be stopped for no good reason, although I realize that while it's happened to me only twice, it happens much more frequently to many black drivers. If the police had any brains, they'd realize that their effectiveness depends on public cooperation, cooperation which they are less likely to get if they continually abuse their power.

Will, you are so right, these white folks are just fine and dandy with Obama when he's telling blacks what they are doing that's wrong, but, tell them the same and its an all out war on him. They live in their fantasy world of being white and if they are male the world of everything catered to their petty whims and then they have the gall to tell blacks, just deal with the police brutality, we whites know what's best for you. Sometimes I think the worse thing ever was for Obama to be president since now they can whine even louder racism is a thing of the past. And, rest assured had gates been a white Harvard professor and did the exact same thing, it would have not ended the same not in the USA 2009.

The truth is both parties acted "stupidly". Professor Gates did so by going off on the officer while not recognizing that the officer was responding to an actual break-in that was being perceived as a burglary and the officer did so by arresting Professor Gates after it was established Professor Gates was indeed a homeowner "breaking into" his own house to enter it not to burglarize it. Both parties failed to effectively communicate with each other, both acted "stupidly", and both should apologize to each other. And as far as "racial profiling" is concerned: Whereas, the case as to whether or not Officer Crowley engaged in racial profiling has yet to be made, the case as to whether or not Professor Gates engaged in racial profiling has pretty clearly been made by Professor Gates himself......he did.

Wrong Caryl, Gates had no obligation to communicate effectively with a Cop on his property. The Cop has an obligation to communicate effectively, be composed & measured even when he's on the receiving end of verbal abuse, with ALL of the public. That's a cop's training in fact. Cops are on the receiving end of verbal abuse all the time, it's really part of the job. I am not saying it's right, I am just saying it's part of the job when you're a cop. Every day Meter Maids, people that issue parking tickets are harassed, abused, called the most vile of names, etc....no biggie. IF Parking Ticket Cops arrested the citizen that verbally abused them, they would be arresting people all day. People have a rigt, especially on their own property, to say, "F U" to anyone that want. The only think Gates could have said to warrant an arrest was to threaten the cops life. I don't think that happened. I don't think Gates threated to kill the cop. Short of that, Gates could have saif, "F U Honky Cracker, Suck My _____", the works. Gates could have said ANYTHING short of threatening the cops life, on his property - and the cop should have just walked away. Again, keep in mind, it does not make it right, but in every city in the USA, meter maids and parking tickets cops are verbally assaulted and abused - with NO ARREST. And this is on public property. People just work too damn hard to justify the Cop arresting Gates. This was a simple Power grab, big dick context between the cop and Gates. The cop wanted to show Gates that he had power, that's all. I doubt he would have done it to a White man.

Donte,

What many whites fail to realize is that there are just as many irresponsible whites as blacks.

From seeing the news, we should all be aware that drug usage is not limited to blacks and probably there are more whites than blacks using drugs.

Irresponsible reproduction and sexual behavior is also common among whites. It is also common for whites to fail to complete high school. Among some whites, being dependent on welfare sometimes is passed from generation to generation.

Considering the above, when Obama chastises blacks for irresponsible behavior, we whites should understand that the criticism also applies to many of us whites. Perhaps instead of aiming his criticism mainly at blacks, it would be better if Obama made it clear that irresponsible behavior is not limited to certain ethnic groups and that we should all, regardless of race or ethnicity, strive to be socially responsible and accept responsibility for our own behavior, while recognizing that that is more difficult for people who are, for various reasons, disadvantaged.

After much debate and meditation and some praying, I decided what I learned about Gates/Crowley. I learned I will never use the word racist towards whites ever again in my entire life unless I truly mean it. And here is why. I thought I spin the record backwards. I was so surprised how many whites seemed generally hurt by being called racists. I even felt the anguish of Officer Crowley. I felt true sympathy and confusion of how something so routine could’ve gone so wrong. The fact it was so routine that he should refresh his sensitivity classes. I thought to myself what it would feel like to be called a racist and if it was the same feeling that blacks feel being called a “n****.” Both are actually twins. Back in the day, to have been called the “n” word during slavery and Jim Crow meant death. Its specific intention was to kill the soul, strip away humanity, saying black life meant nothing, that blacks had no soul therefore no feelings, weren’t human. It was vile and disgusted excuse for lynching, oppression and those who used that word towards others were actual true hardcore racists. It was the beginning of race. There were no black people before slavery. There wasn’t the word “n****” before the colonization. I don’t think a thousand years ago, Africans walked around calling each other the “n” word. Colonism happened, which brought slavery, and in order to justify centuries of unjust imprisonment of innocents for cheap labor, race had to be born. Century after century different clashes of whites came to America, blended, beget the phenomenal of race. Even the indentured servants, could just run away, blend: Whites could forget about how they hated each other, Protestants vs. Catholics, Russians, Irish, Swedish and Australians. It was perfect. Without white people there could be no black people, vice versa. The mere existence of whites almost serves the same purpose as it did many centuries pasts, mostly for monetary gain and social control. Blacks are made to be black from the time they are born and that boxed is check. And whites keep blacks, black, the constant sudden reminders and blacks vice versa. Most blacks don't consider themselves African, it used to be fighting words to even call a black an african. Blacks have just learned to love the phenomenal, that our mere existence began with such violence that had to be accepted in order to survive. That being said, one has to look at the situation with new eyes. This generation is no longer bound by the mistakes of the past yet haunted. I still suffer from it, but I have also benefited from it. I take that world racism very serious. I will not call a person a murderer unless I know they have committed a hate crime, or intend to commit a hate crime. To say he is a racist is like Crowley saying Gates is a nigger, and that he actually wanted to end his life. The correct word is prejudice. We all have prejudged. Prejudice is just a generalization of what created race, us vs. them. A lot of people discriminate on looks, class, neighborhoods, clothing and etc. Skin color is no different. I’ve even prejudged Gates. I’ve thought of him as uppity, someone within a group I would never belong because I’m from lower of low of poverty. I’m not his type. Harvard or anything like it was never in my future. I graduated college, state, and I’m cool with my life. And I prejudged Crowley because he was a white cop and my experiences with cops in general have not been good. I think my experience with black cops has been worse to tell you the truth. The white cops just inconvenient me, the black cops actually jacked me up and tore a favorite shirt of mine because I asked him for a piece of gum in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. He thought I was coming on to him. Trust me, he wasn’t my type. I really just wanted the gum. But New Orleans cops are the devils in uniforms especially towards blacks.

Part II I was also so surprised at the backlash. It wasn’t about mistake or ego bashing. It became unequivocally about true racism. I mean the violence of true racism. I’ve read “they” want the officer to tell Gates to take the beer and stick it where the sun doesn't shine. They want the officer to bash the beer over his head. Next, they will want a live lynching. Back in the day, it would go that far. So, I am thinking, has anything really changed? I at first thought, Couldn't the situation just been about A-hole cops of any color. I don't care what anybody says, a lot of cops overreact. Almost every state in the United States has a disorderly conduct law that makes it a crime to be drunk in public, to "disturb the peace", or to loiter in certain areas. Many types of unruly conduct may fit the definition of disorderly conduct; as such statutes are often used as "catch-all" crimes. Police may use a disorderly conduct charge to keep the peace when people are behaving in a disruptive manner to themselves or others, but present no serious public danger. Now, the guy was in his own home. Who was he putting in danger? Was the danger to him that the cop might lose his cool and shoot him? How was arresting him helping the situation? The officer was not giving a ticket. Once he realized the resident was actually Gates home, why didn’t he just leave. No, like most on this site, Gates used the word “race” which turned everything into a sociological issue. Everyone is reacting to “race.” Everyone is bringing their personal experience and reacting just like Obama. If Obama has shown his true colors, whatever the hell that means, whites are really showing their true colors. I will say, Gates was out of line. Every cop wears they name and badge number on the front of their shirt. If he would’ve kept his cool, he didn’t have to start shouting at the cop. He could’ve just nodded his head, watch the cop leave and write down the cop’s license plate number. He could’ve called the station and got the information. I say this because I was once in the same situation. I had a chip on my shoulder about cops. I had been once wrongly taken to jail a couple of years back. No charges. A simple routine traffic stop where I was so in the wrong, I blew up. All the cop wanted me to do was sign the ticket and got about my life. I needed to make a statement. I got out of my car. I tore of the ticket in the cops face and threw it at him. I was arrested for “lottery” and “disorderly conduct.” The charges didn’t stick because the cop didn’t show up at court. That’s what’s great about the system, it can sometimes be so lazy in your favor or it can be so wrong not in your favor. That time I got lucky. But I felt so dumb afterwards sitting in jail for a day. I had the time to think why I exploded and I was man enough to admit that I was in the wrong. I was going to plead guilty in court that day but it didn’t get that far. My lawyer told me the charges had been drop before I even stood in front of the judge. I wrote that cop a letter of apology. I had to relieve my own karma. I told him about my story and hoped one day he understand and not think all blacks were just assholes.

Part III Now let me not talk about when I was fifteen years old walking home from soccer game when I was stopped, taken to some gas station to be identified as possible robbery suspect. I was in a soccer uniform. I was a kid. They were looking for man in his twenties. I was 5’5 and like a hundred pounds. So don’t tell me that blacks don’t have emotional attachment to the Gates debacle, but it may also be a little misplaced. Obama was out of line by saying the word “Stupidly.” Yet, Obama is black. I understand. It was my immediate knee jerk reaction. Obama was a DA; he’s seen cases like it so many times not to think with common sense. I am black. Like I said, I know what it means to actually be profiled. I’ve been pulled over for driving a certain car and searched, not once but five times in Texas. I’ve been taken from my apartment after someone called in a noise complaint. It was the wrong building. Yet, that didn’t matter to the cop. I was a training prop for a young cop being trained by an older cop. It happens. I was taken down to the car, my i.d. scanned, but still taken to jail. The charge was “Trespassing.” It of course was dropped. Yet, when I called the station to file a complaint I was lost in a pile of paperwork. And when I finally got the actual police report, the officers didn’t even sign their names. IT was like it didn’t happen at all. I believe getting their officer’s name and badge number makes sure you want be a ghost arrest. Yet, Gates is well known and has money. He could’ve gone by the situation a lot cooler. That would’ve been the teachable moment that he missed. THE TEACHABLE MOMENT, we can’t walk around with that chip on our shoulder. Share it. Do something constructive about it. I hate that I let all those years of feeling vulnerable store and fest until it became a cancer on my soul. I let it change my personality. It’s unfair and wrong, but how many of us have actually filed the complaint. How many of us have actually done anything but just keep silent and bitch about it amongst ourselves. Now, Gates will do the same. He turned the situation into a debate and now he is just walking away from it. What is he really teaching? I am now more upset with him more than I ever will be with that cop. I know prejudice exist with everyone. I know police profiling is a major civil rights issue. And all we’ve done is making sure it will be swept under rug and called people names. Great, what’s new? Now we can all return to acting like we are just getting along.

These events will mark the beginning of the end for Democrats and the Obama Presidency. Repugs will use RACE as the rallying cry to bring their soldiers to the polls. This is so disheartening and sad.

You know that's right Shaquitta Fairchild, if Obama wants to get anything done, he has to not get involved with any black issue and was foolish to get involved in this without knowing the facts, these white folks will not and don't ever want to talk about the real life racail injustice that thrives in this country.

I dont have all the facts, but if you arrest me in my own home after i showed you proof it's my home, YOU ARE WORSE THAN STUPID! Obama just cant be that kind of an apologist.

Let's hope this is the beginning of the end of not realizing this country has serious racial issues that are festering and bubbling to come to the surface. Why? Because they are not addressed and are constantly irgnored until some high profile person is involved. These situations are happening everyday. This isn't new.

King Henry - Behind The Castle Gates

As is my customary habit, I am carefully researching an issue which is making the headlines. This issue is the arrest of Henry Gates out of Harvard. My habit is to make sure my thinking is valid and truthful, and my habit is to well arm myself with truth. There is no greater power than truth, I make sure this power is in my mind and flying off my fingertips while I type.

Here are some well hidden truths about "King Henry" I found coming out of Harvard via a little known critique of Henry Gates from a man who helped to hire Gates and to appoint Gates to a professorship position at Harvard.

These are snippets of comments from Harvard Professor Martin Kilson who is now retired. Kilson is the first black man to earn a full professorship at Harvard where he taught for just over forty years.

I've known Henry Gates as an academic colleague quite well during the past decade of his tenure here at Harvard. I was part of the Afro-American Studies Appointments Committee that selected him in fact....

...I decided to probe Gates' particular style and modus operandi....I discovered two things that I disliked about Gates' intellectual discourse. One was an almost neurotic need to couch discourse on African-American socio-cultural and political patterns in what I call "Black put-down terms,"...Second, much of Henry Gates' discourse on African-American socio-cultural and political patterns exhibits a thoroughly chameleon trait — an almost manic need to produce a discourse on Black realities that migrates between a "Black put-down" or "Black-averse" mode, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a seemingly redeeming "Black-friendly" mode, though in ultimate essence the redeeming posture is phony.

...What else can explain the unbelievably arrogant irreverence that Henry Gates exhibited at so many levels....

...I've known Henry Gates for a decade and I can say that I watched and probed his "MO" as much as any of his Harvard colleagues have. At the center of Gates' "MO" is a convoluted autocratic component....

...I've kept a respectful distance from Henry Gates' goodies in order to reserve my independence of action. Luckily for me of course, my academic appointment needs and resources needs here at Harvard have not overlapped with "King Gates,"....

So I try to advise my progressive Black intellectual peers especially to be wary of "King Gates" strategic offerings - his fish-hooks, if at all possible.

Remarkable similarities and parallels between the thinking of Henry Gates and the thinking of Barack Obama, yes?

Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Smart Girl Politics

Ok, seriously! Giving "black" as part of the description of a potential home invader doesn't make one racist, it makes them alert and informative to the officers arriving on the scene. Should the suspect RUN, knowing what the suspect LOOKS LIKE (which INCLUDES RACE) is helpful in aprehending the CORRECT suspect. This woman is a pansy and I'd be willing to put money on the fact that she did, at some point, talk to the officers and say that one man "looked Latino" and the other "was black." NOTHING racist happened the day this man was arrested, but all this hoopla since? Is showcasing just how ridiculously afraid this country has become of offending black people, and THAT is the story we should be reading about. What exactly IS "equal" in the eyes of blacks vs whites?

Michelle, whatever race, a police man who arrests you in your own home after you having illustrated to him it's your home, is on a jealous power trip. And that's stupid.

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