Gates says "Yes" to Beer with Crowley and the President

[HopeOverFear]

"It was very kind of the President to phone me today. Vernon Jordan is absolutely correct: my unfortunate experience will only have a larger meaning if we can all use this to diminish racial profiling and to enhance fairness and equity in the criminal justice system for poor people and for people of color.

And to that end, I look forward to studying the history of racial profiling in a new documentary for PBS. I told the President that my principal regret was that all of the attention paid to his deeply supportive remarks during his press conference had distracted attention from his health care initiative. I am pleased that he, too, is eager to use my experience as a teaching moment, and if meeting Sgt. Crowley for a beer with the President will further that end, then I would be happy to oblige.

After all, I first proposed that Sgt. Crowley and I meet as early as last Monday. If my experience leads to the lessening of the occurrence of racial profiling, then I would find that enormously gratifying. Because, in the end, this is not about me at all; it is about the creation of a society in which 'equal justice before law' is a lived reality."

Henry Louis Gates Jr. is editor in chief of The Root.

[mkultra]

1. god i love this man

[noiretextatique]

2. i look forward to the documentary

i'm sure it will be appallingly accurate.

[Faygo Kid]

3. Class act.

I think Crowley is an OK guy, too, who made a mistake. Love to be there for that beer.

[cleveramerican]

4. three way apology coming

Rose garden press event

[HopeOverFear]

5. two way...not three way

there'll be no apologies coming from Obama.

[cleveramerican]

6. I wouldn't be too sure

He's already sorry, he didn't dodge this.

[Tarheel_Dem]

7. And guess what? He'll still come out of this smelling like a rose. He's a natural born diplomat.

And this can only help him cement what most of us have felt about him all along. I know you're invested in your narrative that this was a huge PR stumble for the president, but I like how this is playing itself out.

[cleveramerican]

12. unexpected PR stumble

is better than huge
only as huge as you think it is

[HopeOverFear]

9. Obama's already done all the so-called "apologizing" he's going to do

But you tell yourself whatever you need to tell yourself.

White privilege is something else, I swear... :eyes:

[Cha]

8. President Obama said

what he had to say at the presser and I'm glad the did because, guess what? It might not have turned out the way it did with a beerfest at the White House..and, won't that be fun?:party::beer::beer::party::beer::party:

Notice how Gates drove a point home about the distraction from Health Care?:)

[Captain Hilts]

13. He already apologized. nt

[Jennicut]

10. Two adults in this situation and one baby....I will let you all discuss who the baby is.

:)

[Leo The Cleo]

11. Skip is a standup guy