Prof. Gates speaks

[Hutzpa]

Prof.Gates statement below;

I just finished making my new documentary series for PBS called “Faces of America.” It was a glorious week in Shanghai and Ningbo and Beijing, and on my trip, I took my daughter along. After we finished working in Ningbo we went to Beijing and had three glorious days as tourists. It was great fun.

We flew back on a direct flight from Beijing to Newark. We arrived on Wednesday, and on Thursday I flew back to Cambridge. I was using my regular driver and my regular car service. And went to my home arriving at about 12:30 in the afternoon. My driver and I carried several bags up to the porch, and we fiddled with the door and it was jammed. I thought, well, maybe the door’s latched. So I walked back to the kitchen porch, unlocked the door and came into the house. And I unlatched the door, but it was still jammed.

My driver is a large black man. But from afar you and I would not have seen he was black. He has black hair and was dressed in a two-piece black suit, and I was dressed in a navy blue blazer with gray trousers and, you know, my shoes. And I love that the 911 report said that two big black men were trying to break in with backpacks on. Now that is the worst racial profiling I’ve ever heard of in my life. (Laughs.) I’m not exactly a big black man. I thought that was hilarious when I found that out, which was yesterday.

It looked like someone’s footprint was there. So it’s possible that the door had been jimmied, that someone had tried to get in while I was in China. But for whatever reason, the lock was damaged. My driver hit the door with his shoulder and the door popped open. But the lock was permanently disfigured. My home is owned by Harvard University, and so any kind of repair work that’s needed, Harvard will come and do it. I called this person, and she was, in fact, on the line while all of this was going on.

Reading this you have to wonder, what is the motive behind the attitude of the police? according
to Prof.Gates, it looks like someone had tried to enter his house as the door lock was jimmied.

The more I read the more I begin to wonder aloud that this whole episode seems suspect to me.



:mad:


link:- http://www.theroot.com/views/skip-gates-speaks?page=0,1


On edit: wanted to add this photo..........

[MercutioATC]

1. "Suspect" in what way?

I think that the footprint on the door reinforces the idea that the police had justification in requiring him to provide ID.


What's your take?

[Hutzpa]

3. The door has been jimmied

which tells me someone must have tried to gain access into the house or got in
the house.

Once it was established that he is the home owner, the officer should have apologies,
explained to him that a neighbor called hence the reason he was there then leave.

There is an ego problem at play here.

[question everything]

9. Except, he is not the homeowner. Harvard is

and the question is whether this is her permanent residence. Whether his driver's license lists this address as his residency.

Either way, once his identity was established, as a Harvard professor, the officer should have asked him whether he was OK and then left.

[MADem]

12. It is his permanent residence. He's assigned the home as a tenured prof.

His address on his license matched the house. It's in the statement by the professor.

[timeforpeace]

24. That's interesting. Could have contributed to confusion, at which point cooperation was warranted.

Look at that picture. Someone posted it's not against the law to be an obnoxious asshole. True, and he obviously was.

[MercutioATC]

11. I think both parties were at fault here.

The officer was responding to a complaint of two black males attempting to break into a house. He arrives at the house, sees a door that shows evidence of being forced, and a black male answers the door.

He asks the person to step outside, and the person says "No, I will not".


I think that kinda set the tone for this situation. The police had reasonable suspicion, but acted unreasonably when presented with valid ID. Gates, by his own statement, felt that he was "in danger" the moment the officer asked him to step outside. He also made claims to the officer that his behavior was racist.

Had Gates not assumed this was a race issue (and not acted on that assumption), there probably would have been no problem.

Had the officer just let Gates rave about racism and ignored him, there probably would have been no problem.

[Hutzpa]

25. My thought on that is

if he had stepped outside he probably would have hurt him or ruff him up, as stated by
his Attorney friend, it was a wise thing to not have gone outside.

[Mimosa]

35. ^ RIGHT^

Gates has a drama king thing going in the photo, doesn't he?

[MADem]

10. He PROVIDED the ID. At that point, the next step was "Have a nice day, Professor."

Not "You're under arrest, you uppity bastid."

I’m saying ‘You need to send someone to fix my lock.’ All of a sudden, there was a policeman on my porch. And I thought, ‘This is strange.’ So I went over to the front porch still holding the phone, and I said ‘Officer, can I help you?’ And he said, ‘Would you step outside onto the porch.’ And the way he said it, I knew he wasn’t canvassing for the police benevolent association. All the hairs stood up on the back of my neck, and I realized that I was in danger. And I said to him no, out of instinct. I said, ‘No, I will not.’

My lawyers later told me that that was a good move and had I walked out onto the porch he could have arrested me for breaking and entering. He said ‘I’m here to investigate a 911 call for breaking and entering into this house.’ And I said ‘That’s ridiculous because this happens to be my house. And I’m a Harvard professor.’ He says ‘Can you prove that you’re a Harvard professor?’ I said yes, I turned and closed the front door to the kitchen where I’d left my wallet, and I got out my Harvard ID and my Massachusetts driver’s license which includes my address and I handed them to him. And he’s sitting there looking at them.

Now it’s clear that he had a narrative in his head: A black man was inside someone’s house, probably a white person’s house, and this black man had broken and entered, and this black man was me.

[Warpy]

2. The cop's pride wouldn't let him back down when he found out

Gates was the homeowner, wouldn't let a black man correct him, so he embellished (read: falsified) the report to make himself look reasonable.

He should be looking for a new job soon.

Boston/Cambridge is an incredibly high property crime area. Finding some kid with a screwdriver had tried to pop the door open and jammed the lock is not unusual there.

BTDT.

[LisaL]

4. Somebody might have actually tried to break into that house?

Well, if anybody else tries at that address, what do you think is police going to do?

[MUAD_DIB]

7. Hopefully their duty to protect and to serve.

[LisaL]

8. Shouldn't they just assume it is Prof Gates trying to get into his

home again, and not bother him?

[MUAD_DIB]

21. That is a little sad to think that they should just not to do their

jobs because of the ongoing drama of the week.

It is the duty of the police to make sure all are protected from any crime if possible.


If they were to offer anything less then they should just turn in their badges.

[LisaL]

23. I believed courts have ruled police don't really have an obligation

to protect you.

[MUAD_DIB]

27. Can you cite the ruling or precedent for that?

[LisaL]

29. O'key.

"a) A State's failure to protect an individual against private violence generally does not constitute a
violation of the Due Process Clause, because the Clause imposes no duty on the State to provide
members of the general public with adequate protective services."

http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/6260/deshaney.html

[MUAD_DIB]

31. That's a little different than not answering a call. The police are obligated

to answer the call if a house is being burglarized

(a) A State's failure to protect an individual against private violence generally does not constitute a
violation of the Due Process Clause, because the Clause imposes no duty on the State to provide
members of the general public with adequate protective services.



This is dealing more with a protective custody issue and not a threat to private property. No?

[Hutzpa]

5. Thats ego

"an absolute power corrupts absolutely" this is the problem with most police forces
in America, the feeling is that they can do whatever and whenever.

[MUAD_DIB]

6. Wow. Another all seeing DUer.

[NoSheep]

13. CLEARLY..in an "All-seeing" kinda way, you have never been a victim of discrimination.

...unless I misread your meaning.

[MUAD_DIB]

19. Actually I have. Surprised?

I have been the recipient of both racial epithets and on-the-job sexual harassment. That doesn't make me an expert on what some cop was thinking though.

[NoSheep]

28. Yes. I am VERY surprised that those experiences don't SEEM to have affected your

sensibilities...at least where your comments here are concerned. Re-read them and then tell me... Surprised?

[MUAD_DIB]

32. And it took you so long just to reply with that?

My sensibilities are getting a kick tonight trying to keep up with all the overheated responses to my wanting to get the full story on the Gates affair.

I'm not a fly off the handle kind of guy.

The incidents I listed have shaped me, and I haven't forgot them, but I don't let them cloud my judgment or bias my feelings toward others.

[NoSheep]

33. Well I'm glad to hear that. Sincerely.

The "waiting period", I assure you, has NOTHING to do with you.. What delusions you must have (or once again...SEEM to have) of self importance.

Your comment was just so snarky, and why? You should expect to be called out for it. I am genuinely happy if you are a person who cares for others and am willing to accept you as a fellow in our struggle against the powers that be. But really...your comment was out of NOWHERE and unwarranted, I felt. Thus..I responded as I did. Now. Are you only about snarky comments? Or is there more to you than that and the experiences you claim to have had?

[MUAD_DIB]

34. Everybody seems to have an opinion of what happened, but it is really

only just that: an opinion.


I have seen enough responses of how I am evil, a freep, or as you call me delusional with self importance to keep me amused for days.

You are right that my comment was full of snark, but it was just as full as you and others have shown of knowing and seeing all when you apparently really don't know or see much.

I'll keep calling out DUers BS when I see it, and you can call me delusional in defense.


Good night.

[Hutzpa]

42. MAUD I think the reason

folks are angry at you is that they felt you are not showing any understanding as
to what lies beneath this whole episode, yes, there are more cases out there of
police abusing their power but it takes one prominent incident to expose the rest,
whether you are upset because this should not be blown out of proportion, it still
stands as a fact, Professor Gates is a well know individual and he is not that
stupid or ignorant not to know the difference between carrying out the Law and abusing
the Law, thats why most folks here are upset with you because they felt you are
deliberately showing ignorance of the situation.

[Warpy]

39. Honey, we've all run into those guys

whether or not they're in uniform, guys who get the wrong idea and are too ego involved to let it go when they're proven wrong.

[imdjh]

16. I don't think Gates should have been arrested, but according to his own story...

... he was in major chip-on-shoulder mode. And now we know that the police officer wasn't alone when Gates was arrested, so the whole thing might be more interesting than it was a couple of articles ago.

[Warpy]

40. He was having a bad day, his door was screwed up

and after he'd shown his ID to the cop, he was entitled to a small chip on the shoulder. His voice was probably raised at that point.

It just wasn't as big as the one on the cop's shoulder.

Cops need to learn how to back down when they're wrong. Most of the problems between police and the community have come from some cop who got the wrong idea and refused to let go of it.

[imdjh]

14. I find it odd that a professor of black studies misuses the term "racial profiling"

[jeffrey_X]

15. Now close your eyes and imagine it was bill gates.

eom

[bertman]

17. White police officer responds to call saying black men are breaking into a home.

Officer approaches and sees jimmied door and black man inside house. Officer asks famous black man, who officer does not know or recognize as famous, for i.d. per police procedure. Famous black professor racially profiles white officer as being a racist who is persecuting another black man and refuses to show i.d. while loudly proclaiming that the white cop is a racist.

Meanwhile, the black man has not even considered the fact that the cop was there to protect HIS house from being robbed.

This is the opposite of what it is being portrayed as. It's a case of a famous black man racially profiling a white cop who was just doing his job.

Ask yourself the question: would Mr. Gates have treated an African American cop the same way as the white cop under the same circumstances.

President Obama should be ashamed for trying to make political hay off of this. But, after all, Skip is his friend.

[Liberal_in_LA]

20. Gates showed his ID. The Cop didn't arrest him until after he know it was his home.

[bertman]

41. Gates first refused to show his i.d. while telling the officer he was racially profiling him

and that this is how black men get treated in America.

[Liberal_in_LA]

43. but then he did show is ID, the cop then believed it was Gates home, The cop decides to arrest him

when gates asked for id badge/id number... face it ... Gates was arrested because the cop wanted to punish him

[bertman]

44. I disagree.

[masuki bance]

18. I get it- You think the cops jimmied the door so that when Gates came home

his neighbors would call the police when they saw him trying to bust it down, so they could come in and arrest him.

Makes sense.

[Hutzpa]

22. Where did you find that script

:shrug:

[timeforpeace]

26. The made-for-TV movie is set. Who will play Gates?

[shrdlu]

30. Samuel L Jackson and Nicolas Cage played this situation...

in a 1990 something movie called "Amos and Andrew" Dabney Coleman was the uptight sheriff.

[peacetalksforall]

36. Yesterday, the story in one of the papers said the cop that came into the house, thanked him and

turned around to leave. At the door were other officers. The original guy turned around and told him to step out that he was under arrest. That is the way I remember it.

If there is a call in of a burglary in progress, don't the police have someone in their office use technology to determine who is shown as living in the house? If there were other officers gathering outside - why couldn't they start checking out who is supposeed to be there or checking out the car that they just got out of.

Did the police not believe him or is he being arrested for saying NO? Did they not believe that the photo of the driver didn't match his face?

I am disgusted with the snide remarks in this thread - above.

Some of the remarks above are typical of 'guilty until proven innocent'.
Since I believe in 'innocent until proven guilty' remarks and I am a Democrat,
it means that those who made the 'guilty until proven innocent' remarks must not be Democrat.

Explain how that syllogism is incorrect.

Explain how anyone here knows that the professor spoke disrespectfully to the police which is also what some here are saying.

Why couldn't the officer not match the ID with the face.

If the professor had a regular driver, the driver could also show his ID and the car could be traced - either a taxicab accounted for or a Harvard driver?

I am reading Rovian reality in this thread. For people on this forum to blame the professor is ludicrous without knowing that he broke some law in the process.

Whatever we find out - there is a great probability that the police did not believe that a black man could be living on that property.

Regrettably, we have plenty of cases that make it easy to not trust the police. The honesty was in trouble in places from city to city, it all seems to be going down hill since the Patriot Act. The guidance that the officers are receiving is absurd. Everyone is an enemy and they are God. Changes were made to catch terrorists - supposedly.

The Patriot Act must contain some kind of sentence that says only whites are honest.

These stories just keep rolling in.

[gauguin57]

37. Well, the cops clearly don't watch PBS. Cuz he's been all over that chanel over the past few years.

His "African-American Lives" series and sequel ... where he ran DNA of famous African-Americans to figure out what countries they came from, and also did research into people's slave ancestors ... were just fabulous TV shows.

Gates told various black celebrities such interesting things about their ancestors (Oprah's freed-slave ancestors were educators, for example).

Gates was the host and narrator of the series. Guess the cops aren't tuned into PBS.

[Hutzpa]

38. Which could have helped him

in the line of work that he does.

[TexasObserver]

45. Two black men at 12:30 pm in a white neighborhood.

THAT was the crime, from cop's standpoint.