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Housing While Black (1 Viewer)

Fennis

Footballguy
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/na...0,4676184.story

Black professor's arrest continues to rattle Boston area

Blogs and talk radio erupt after the erroneous arrest of Harvard academic Henry Louis Gates Jr. Some say the case shows that even in an area that prides itself on open-mindedness, racism persists.

By Elizabeth Mehren

6:00 PM PDT, July 22, 2009

Reporting from Boston -- In a region where summer preoccupations normally revolve around baseball and the weather, blogs exploded Wednesday with people eager to weigh in on issues of race, class and police harassment.

Talk radio made room for little else. And coffee counters in beach communities from South Boston to Martha's Vineyard buzzed with discussions about Harvard's prominent African American studies professor, Henry Louis Gates Jr., who was arrested after attempting to enter his own home.

The Henry Gates caseCharges dropped against black Harvard scholar

Although Cambridge police had already dropped the charges against Gates, labeling the incident "regrettable and unfortunate," the case continued to reverberate through an area that prides itself on a spirit of open-mindedness -- despite its history of racial strife.

"This is not dying down, and it's not going to," said Callie Crossley, a Boston TV and radio commentator.

It all started last Thursday when Gates, returning after a 20-hour flight from China, was unable to open the front door to his house a block from Harvard Square. While his limo driver tried to help him, a woman called police to say that "two black males with backpacks" were trying to break in to the sunny yellow house. A confrontation ensued. Gates, 58, was led away in handcuffs. A police mug shot of one of the country's leading black intellectuals soon surfaced on the Internet.

Gates is the director of Harvard's W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research and edits an online magazine dedicated to black news and culture. He has written numerous books, produced documentaries for PBS and BBC, won a MacArthur "genius" grant and in 1997 was named one of Time magazine's "25 Most Influential Americans." According to Harvard's website, he holds 49 honorary degrees.

Gates' arrest has resonated "with persons of color, in particular," Crossley said, because "if it could happen to him, it could happen to any of us."

An op-ed article in the Boston Globe on Wednesday by Georgianna Melendez, who co-directs a project aimed at making the state more friendly to minorities, cited a 2006 University of Massachusetts at Boston study that showed 75% of African Americans interviewed said race relations in the state were fair to poor. In addition, 17% of blacks surveyed said they had experienced racial discrimination by police within the previous year.

Those figures, coupled with the outrage following Gates' arrest, should disabuse anyone of the notion of a peaceful, "post-racial" America, Melendez said.

"Just because we have a black governor in this state and a black president in America," she said, "doesn't mean the race issue has gone away."

Around Boston, black community leaders blasted the Cambridge police officer who arrested Gates.

E. Denise Simmons, Cambridge's first African American female mayor, said the incident highlighted the city's need to find ways to address matters of race and class. And Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust issued a statement saying she was "deeply troubled" by Gates' arrest.

From his home on Martha's Vineyard, meanwhile, Gates told the Globe on Wednesday that he might file a lawsuit against Cambridge authorities. At the same time, a city police union gave "full and unqualified support" to Sgt. James Crowley, the arresting officer.

While there is some dispute over the specifics of the events that led up to Gates' arrest, Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, said the incident had offered a much-needed opportunity to discuss topics many people prefer to avoid.

"The amount of buzz that this has generated suggests that there are a lot of issues about race and class that go unspoken here until something like this opens the door, and then suddenly there is a flood of discussion -- on the radio, in the streets, on blogs and across the political spectrum," Rose said.

But sustaining that dialogue is critical, said Paul S. Bracy, a human relations consultant who has advised corporations and the military on diversity issues for more than 30 years.

"People have such difficulties in race and understanding the subtleties of racism," he said.

Gates' stature makes him "a spokesperson to some degree about race issues in this country," said Bracy, who lives in the Martha's Vineyard community of Oak Bluffs, a historically African American enclave. That standing may help provoke a kind of collective teaching moment, he suggested.

"When people talk about race, they tend to think about the bigots and the loudmouths," he said. "Today, we are talking about the subtle beliefs and attitudes that come through in our behavior, that come from a racist education that is enculturated in our society."

But, Bracy cautioned, such conversations are difficult.

"What I would like to see is some kind of ongoing dialogue, so that people feel more comfortable talking about it with their neighbors, so we can move forward. It's critical to discuss this in a way that brings us closer together and not farther apart."
There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.

 
I read a piece with the same title on cnn.com today. I agree 100% with you. What a disgrace. Gates is awesome and one of the best scholars of our time.

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.

 
There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.
I think if Gates hadn't acted like an #######, it wouldn't have escalated to the point it did either.
 
The President had to discuss this in his health care news conference for it to be FFA worthy

:D
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/us/politics/23gates.html
Obama Criticizes Arrest of Harvard Professor

Published: July 22, 2009

WASHINGTON — President Obama bluntly accused the police of acting “stupidly” by arresting the Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. last week after an officer had established that Mr. Gates had not broken into his own home in Cambridge., Mass..

More Politics News

Mr. Obama stopped short of accusing the police department of racial profiling, as Mr. Gates has done. But during a prime-time White House news conference that was otherwise largely devoted to health care, Mr. Obama weighed in full bore on the Gates case and suggested that the police should never have arrested him.

He added that African-Americans and Hispanics in the United States have long been familiar with racial profiling by law enforcement.

“There’s a long history in this country of African-Americans being stopped disproportionately by the police,” Mr. Obama said. “It’s a sign of how race remains a factor in this society.”

The Cambridge police dropped disorderly conduct charges against Professor Gates on Tuesday, but he says he still wants a personal apology.

Professor Gates, a leading authority on African-American history, said he thought it was because he is black that the officer, Sgt. James Crowley, had not at first believed that he lived in the upscale home.
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
Apparently, his house had been broken into before as well.OUTRAGE!

 
The President had to discuss this in his health care news conference for it to be FFA worthy

:D
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/23/us/politics/23gates.html
Obama Criticizes Arrest of Harvard Professor

Published: July 22, 2009

WASHINGTON — President Obama bluntly accused the police of acting “stupidly” by arresting the Harvard scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. last week after an officer had established that Mr. Gates had not broken into his own home in Cambridge., Mass..

More Politics News

Mr. Obama stopped short of accusing the police department of racial profiling, as Mr. Gates has done. But during a prime-time White House news conference that was otherwise largely devoted to health care, Mr. Obama weighed in full bore on the Gates case and suggested that the police should never have arrested him.

He added that African-Americans and Hispanics in the United States have long been familiar with racial profiling by law enforcement.

“There’s a long history in this country of African-Americans being stopped disproportionately by the police,” Mr. Obama said. “It’s a sign of how race remains a factor in this society.”

The Cambridge police dropped disorderly conduct charges against Professor Gates on Tuesday, but he says he still wants a personal apology.

Professor Gates, a leading authority on African-American history, said he thought it was because he is black that the officer, Sgt. James Crowley, had not at first believed that he lived in the upscale home.
I'm not much of a fan of Obama, but saying that took huge stones....and good for him for doing so.
 
There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.
I think if Gates hadn't acted like an #######, it wouldn't have escalated to the point it did either.
OK, so you're in your own house and the police come and treat you like a criminal and you wouldn't act like that? Seriously?
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
 
African Americans are increasingly integrating into American society. Black youth are not the liberal voting bloc their parents or grandparents were. They are transforming into a swing vote. This is a major threat to liberalism. If the black vote becomes a swing vote, then that alters the electoral math to an enormous degree and makes it much more difficult for liberals to win office in the future.

How might you fix that? Nominate an African American perhaps? Effective, but no long term solution. How about if the liberal media sensationalized stories of racism to try to drive a wedge between blacks and whites? Perhaps. Doubtful such tactics are going to stop the trend though. I think blacks are going to integrate and become a swing vote, and the liberals cannot stop it.

 
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There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.
I think if Gates hadn't acted like an #######, it wouldn't have escalated to the point it did either.
OK, so you're in your own house and the police come and treat you like a criminal and you wouldn't act like that? Seriously?
The police had a report that his house was being broken into. You don't think the police should make sure the person who claims he lives there identifies himself?
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
 
One-sided article above...the person making this racial is Gates and those who see everything thru race. First of all Cambridge is one of the most liberal cities in the country and almost anything a cop does in that city will be looked down upon.

As for the incident the cops responded to a call from a concerned neighbor when she saw two men trying to push in a door. Again, they were responding to a call of a potential B&E...they did not randomly pull Gates over. After that it's turning into a he said/he said incident.

Once there it appears they asked Gates for his ID and he pulled the whole "do you know who I am" routine and witnesses have said he was all over the cop. He denies it but the police report states he gave the cop a "Your momma" comment when asked to come out of his home (which appears to be a pretty standard procedure in this type of call). He continued to berate the cop who than went on to warn Gates three times about his actions and when he still did not stop he was arrested for disorderly conduct.

Obviously there are two-sides to this story...there always is. Yet, living here and having this story plastered all over the news and radio I see zero evidence this officer did anything due to race (I believe there was also a black officer on the scene as well). Race has become the issue due to Gates and those who obviously feel a police officer reacting to a 911 call is a racial issue simply because Gates is black. I'm sure it would have been an issue if there was actually a break-in going on and the cops did not respond in a timely manner.

This is an unfortunate situation and so far Gates seems to be very comfortable taking his story to the public (as well as talking about a lawsuit and making a movie). Unfortunately for the cop he's not allowed to comment on this and there's little doubt he will get thrown under the bus by the City of Cambridge, Governor Patrick and now the President. It's too bad because I've yet to see any evidence that he was doing anything but his job.

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
Just now getting acquainted with this story and this is the first I've heard that the 60 year old man with a cane skulked his way over a gate with a backpack full of God knows what.Don't think I've called for one before but...link?

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
Ok, gotcha. Well it seems like there's 2 issues here:1. Why this person called the cops -- if there is "racism" here initially at least, it's probably with this person. The cops showing up are just doing their job in responding to a call like this.2. What exactly ensued after the cops showed up? Did Gates escalate things? I'm not sure it's easy to say this is some sort of racist indictment of our system without knowing exactly what went down. Maybe Gates tried to big time the cops instead of acting calm?
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
No.The cop overstepped his bounds. However that would've happened black or white. Your chance of a cop exceeding his authority in a situation like this is directly proportional to how much of a #### you act like.
 
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So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
It really depends.
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
For a cop, YES. Cops dont HAVE to put up with your bull####. If you wont calmly and rationally have a discussion with them, away you go. The handcuffs are the ultimate equalizer. You dont do what the cop wants you to do and he'll haul you in.
 
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There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.
I think if Gates hadn't acted like an #######, it wouldn't have escalated to the point it did either.
OK, so you're in your own house and the police come and treat you like a criminal and you wouldn't act like that? Seriously?
The police had a report that his house was being broken into. You don't think the police should make sure the person who claims he lives there identifies himself?
You really think a man as wise as him wouldn't identify himself? Seriously???
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
No.The cop overstepped his bounds. However that would've happened black or white. Your chance of a cop exceeding his authority in a situation like this is directly proportional to how much of a #### you act like.
I have a hard time believing that. I'm white. When I get pulled over and a black friend is with me they pull his ID too. When I get pulled over and a white friend is with me it doesn't happen.
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
Just now getting acquainted with this story and this is the first I've heard that the 60 year old man with a cane skulked his way over a gate with a backpack full of God knows what.Don't think I've called for one before but...link?
Don't have a link, but the story I read said that he got home from a trip to China and found his front door jammed. Went around to the back and couldn't get in, got his driver to help him open the front. The cops got a report of a break in.Then the stories diverge.

Professor says he showed ID, and Cop made him come outside for questioning.

Cop says Professor initially refused to show ID, then followed the Cop outside yelling at him.

Sounds like an unfortunate incident that could have been handled better by both sides. Professor is probably right that he would have been treated differently if he was white. But, sounds like he was so outraged by this he exacerbated the situation. Cop was trying to his job, had a report of a break in.

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
For a cop, YES. Cops dont HAVE to put up with your bull####. If you want calmly and rationally have a discussion with them, away you go. The handcuffs are the ultimate equalizer. You dont do what the cop wants you to do and he'll haul you in.
They kinda do.
 
They kinda do.

Really? Not any of the cops I have ever come into contact with. With laws regarding "Disorderly Conduct" or "Disturbing the Peace" are pretty liberal. Those are always the go to charges when you are being an ### and the cops just want to arrest you.

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
:rolleyes: show the cops your ID explain situation nothing to report... This reeks of race baiting.
 
For a cop, YES. Cops dont HAVE to put up with your bull####. If you want calmly and rationally have a discussion with them, away you go. The handcuffs are the ultimate equalizer. You dont do what the cop wants you to do and he'll haul you in.

They kinda do.

Umm, know they don't.

Sounds like this guy was a typical Harvard elitist who didn't feel it necessary to completely cooperate. Sometimes you get what you deserve.

 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
After showing proof of residence as well.####### ridiculous.
 
There's discrepancy between the police version and Gates' version, but its very difficult to feel race wasn't a major factor when a rich prominent professor is arrested in his own home.I find it hard to believe if Gates were white that this thing would have escalated to the point it did, and certainly I can't imagine he would have been arrested.
I think if Gates hadn't acted like an #######, it wouldn't have escalated to the point it did either.
OK, so you're in your own house and the police come and treat you like a criminal and you wouldn't act like that? Seriously?
The police had a report that his house was being broken into. You don't think the police should make sure the person who claims he lives there identifies himself?
You really think a man as wise as him wouldn't identify himself? Seriously???
So you think the following happened:"We had a report this house was being broken into""One of my neighbors must've made an honest mistake, I live here. Here's my ID officer.""You know what? Let's arrest his ### anyway."
 
So a good samaritan calls the cops when she sees 2 people climbing a fence with backpacks in the middle of the night, the cops show up, the professor acts like a doosh, and I'm supposed to be outraged by this?

This is weak.
It was 12:45 PM. No gate was climbed. At a minimum Iwould think people would find it disturbing when the police arrest a 60 year old man in his own home for "disturbing the peace"
The guy broke into the house because he didnt have the keys. My experience with the police (been arrested myself on disturbing the peace charges) leads me to believe that when the police started questioning him Gates must have acted like an #######.
let's say you're right and that the nerdy 58 year old Harvard Professor acted like an #######. Is that reason to be arrested?
No.The cop overstepped his bounds. However that would've happened black or white. Your chance of a cop exceeding his authority in a situation like this is directly proportional to how much of a #### you act like.
Not in a neighborhood like that....sorry.
 
So you think the following happened:"We had a report this house was being broken into""One of my neighbors must've made an honest mistake, I live here. Here's my ID officer.""You know what? Let's arrest his ### anyway."
No, I absolutely do not. You really think the cops responding in that neighborhood would have asked before acting with a black man? What world do you live in?
 
So you think the following happened:"We had a report this house was being broken into""One of my neighbors must've made an honest mistake, I live here. Here's my ID officer.""You know what? Let's arrest his ### anyway."
No, I absolutely do not. You really think the cops responding in that neighborhood would have asked before acting with a black man? What world do you live in?
So they arrested him before asking for his ID?
 
The limo driver was black, so it wasn't just one black man trying to get into the house it was two.

 
So you think the following happened:"We had a report this house was being broken into""One of my neighbors must've made an honest mistake, I live here. Here's my ID officer.""You know what? Let's arrest his ### anyway."
No, I absolutely do not. You really think the cops responding in that neighborhood would have asked before acting with a black man? What world do you live in?
So they arrested him before asking for his ID?
How did they ask for his ID? You think it was how you said in your scenario?
 
####### Massachusetts at its finest.

Eyewitness told the newspapers Gates was making a huge scene about being asked for his ID. Kept bringing up right off the bat about how this is how blacks are treated, blah blah blah.

If Gates kept his cool, showed his ID, the cop would have moved on and that would have been that. The reason this is a whole issue is because of the fight Gates put up. He should be thrown in prison as far as I'm concerned for wasting our ####### time with this crap.

 

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