<p>Gates said, “Yo Mama!” to the police officer? Really? Says who, Officer Crowley? Were there any witnesses? When did this supposedly occur during the course of these events, and in what context? Gate’s own recounting of the events does not include him admitting to ever using such a phrase—one which quite frankly, would seem a strange thing for a PH.d, world renown academic in comparative Literature to say to a police officer—not such a strange a thing for a stereotype of a black man to say (after all, don’t all us blacks say such things?. :rolleyes:), especially if someone who only sees you as a stereotype is trying to embellish a story in order to justify having arrested you.</p>
<p>poetsheart, Gates’ account is quite sparing in terms of what he said to the police officers.</p>
<p>Use of yo’ mamma is actually passe’. The sterotypes need to be updated. I’m tickled that people actually believed he said that.</p>
<p>/chuckle</p>
<p>“Gate’s own recounting of the events does not include him admitting to ever using such a phrase”</p>
<p>You mean Gates is not capable of lying?</p>
<p>Gates has said on national TV (really, I heard it with my own ears. I sure there’s footage somewhere. :rolleyes:) that he bears no animosity toward the woman who reported the incident. He did, in fact thank her, and said that he hoped that if it were thought that someone were trying to break into his house on Martha’s Vineyard, he hoped someone would call the police then too. His beef is with Officer Crowley, and his perception that the man was treating him life a criminal from the start.</p>
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<p>Of course Gates is capable of lying. So, might I add, is Officer Crowley. The question goes entirely to credibility. What’s telling, however, is how you automatically believe the officer is the one telling the truth. But, given your oft demonstrated attitudes toward black America, it’s not in the least surprising. But, I suppose I’m just “playing the race card” to point that out.
Again, see my post: #256.</p>
<p><a href=“CBS/AP”>quote</a> A white police sergeant who arrested renowned black scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. was the campus police officer who tried to save the life of former Boston Celtics player Reggie Lewis. </p>
<p>Sgt. James Crowley was a campus police officer at Brandeis University when Lewis, who was black, collapsed and died during an off-season workout in July 1993. Crowley administered CPR, trying to resuscitate the dying Lewis. </p>
<p>…“I wasn’t working on Reggie Lewis the basketball star. I wasn’t working on a black man. I was working on another human being,” Crowley said. </p>
<p>He says that people still question whether he did enough to save the basketball star. </p>
<p>“Some people were saying ‘There’s the guy who killed Reggie Lewis’ afterward. I was broken-hearted. I cried for many nights,” Crowley told the Herald. </p>
<p>Crowley said Thursday he’s disappointed President Barack Obama said officers acted “stupidly” without knowing all the facts. </p>
<p>Gates was charged with disorderly conduct. The charge was dropped Tuesday, and Gates has since demanded an apology from Crowley. </p>
<p>Crowley, 42, said he won’t apologize. And his union has expressed “full and unqualified” support for him. </p>
<p>Fellow officers, black and white, say he is well-liked and respected on the force. </p>
<p>Former director of Public Safety at Brandies Joseph McDonald told the Boston Herald that Crowley was a “real pro” and that Gates’ charge was “strange.” </p>
<p>“You just do the job as a cop. You don’t look at the color of skin. You’re just trying to help people,” McDonald said.
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<p>[Cop</a> Who Cuffed Gates Tried to Save NBA Pro - CBS News](<a href=“http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/23/national/main5182351.shtml]Cop”>http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/07/23/national/main5182351.shtml)</p>
<p>razorsharp
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<p>That is my impression as well, although I would add that if I were Professor Gates (and had both his life experiences, his knowledge about the current state of affairs between law enforcement and the African American community, plus the charming interaction with cops on my own property) I would probably have felt the same way. I hope I would not have overreacted as he did, but I can’t say that I wouldn’t have done the same thing (and gotten arrested to boot). What I am saying is that, realistically, I think I would also have made a false claim of racism.</p>
<p>Basically, I think that if someone put Gates and Crowley in a room and they had the time to talk this out, the whole think could be resolved.</p>
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<p>Professor Gates should have been treated like a criminal from the start. He was reported to the police as someone possibly breaking into a house and he in fact broke into the house. Sergeant Crowley should have treated Gates like a criminal because that is exactly what it looked like. Can you imagine how ridiculous Crowley would have looked if he went to a house that was actually being broken into by a crook who said “It’s my house” and then Crowley left only to find out later it wasn’t the house of the guy inside.</p>
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Me too. Sometimes our life experiences come back and create “buttons” for others to push, whether intentionally or not. I thought this op-ed was very interesting. If I were a police officer (can we all agree that we’re glad I’m not?) and I was following up on a break-in in progress, my adrenaline would probably be rushing and I’d be on heightened alert. I’m just glad no one got hurt.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32085686[/url]”>http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32085686</a></p>
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<p>I cannot say I disagree with you spidygirl. </p>
<p>The problem is that just because some police have a history of abuse towards blacks in the past does not mean that Sgt. Crowley is acting out of racist beliefs. My experience with having observed police, sheriffs, and state troopers over the years is that if you are docile and cooperate with them they do not perceive you as a threat and will treat you professionally. If you are confrontational and accusatory towards the police, many of them will push back and since they have the authority of the law on their side, they can push back harder than you can push. The result is that you lose. I suspect that when Gates went into his rant about who he was, etc. and created a disruption outside the house, Sergeant Crowley perceived this as Gates being an a–hole and reacted as many police do when they encounter a jerk – they arrest him. The most likely scenario so far is that Crowley arrested Gates because of Gate’s behavior towards him. Because Gates is black and is a student of racial abuse, he presumed a white officer was arresting him because of his race.</p>
<p>You know, when I look at the photo that goes with the article zm just posted, it leaves me feeling really sorry that the police arrested Gates, even if he was carrying on. He’s a little bitty weak-looking guy compared to them. They should have shaken their heads and left.</p>
<p>The interesting thing to me is that the supplemental police report was filed by Officer Figueroa. I wonder if he is the black officer. He doesn’t reference the “yo momma” comment which may not have been said at all, but he does seem to support the contention that Professor Gates had his buttons pushed from the get-go. However, the report filed by Officer Crowley does say that Professor Gates said that. If the report was falsified, Officer Crowley should lose his job. That would be a very serious offense.</p>
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<p>He tried to get into his own house but couldn’t so went in through the back and then used a sufficient force to open the front door from the inside. I would say that he used force to open the front door. He didn’t break into the house.</p>
<p>My reading of the situation is that he came back outside, and that he and the driver pushed in the door from the outside. (Another minor fact point: some people have referred to the driver as a taxi driver, but I think it was actually Gates’ driver, so the car may have been nondescript, not a taxi.)</p>
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<p>There were white, black and hispanic officers. My guess is that Gonzalez was hispanic. I saw a picture of the three earlier and I think that the caption indicated who was who so a little digging should confirm which Gonzalez was.</p>
<p>Oh, ok BCEagle. I only saw two officers. Thank you for clarifying. I also got both officers’ names wrong. Ugh on me!</p>
<p>Gates then, according to Crowley, said he was being harassed because he is a “black man in America.” As the confrontation escalated, Crowley was then joined by a Hispanic Cambridge police officer and a black sergeant, according to two high-ranking law enforcement officials who have been briefed on the case and Cambridge police reports. </p>
<p>[Obama</a> Criticizes Police in Henry Louis Gates Case - ABC News](<a href=“Obama: Police Acted 'Stupidly' in Gates Case - ABC News”>Obama: Police Acted 'Stupidly' in Gates Case - ABC News)</p>
<p>If you are pushing from the outside and somehow end up inside, then there is a sufficient basis for a police officer to conclude that you broken in. </p>
<p>Another question that comes to mind, since when do college professors have houses on Martha’s Vineyard? College professors can be paid well, but Harvard must be off the charts.</p>
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<p>Yes, the photo struck me the same way. Gates, despite his mouth, was clearly harmless. I’d hate to see what might have happened if it were someone else with more imposing physical characteristics.</p>