tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post6347209991080095750..comments2024-03-22T20:34:13.792-05:00Comments on Indomitable | The online home of Chauncey DeVega: Are We Laughing Yet? Race, Class, Gender and the Arrest of Henry Louis GatesLady Zora, Chauncey DeVega, and Gordon Gartrellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09138154899923808806noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-81510278434073432962009-07-30T23:05:08.199-05:002009-07-30T23:05:08.199-05:00Obama taught constitutional law. The teaching mome...Obama taught constitutional law. The teaching moment should be about the Fourth Amendment. That is if there are any copies of the Constitution left, since it was used as toilet paper for the last 8 years. <br /><br />The professionalism of police work is a relatively recent phenomenon. For most of this country's history, the police have been no better than thugs, who have been enlisted to protect the privilege and property of other thugs.Thelonioushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11790809678431260649noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-12892516262033648652009-07-29T10:08:03.711-05:002009-07-29T10:08:03.711-05:00I think the real key here to understanding what ha...I think the real key here to understanding what happened is to mark on the timeline of events when Prof. Gates was actually arrested.<br /><br />According to the Police Report which is up on thesmokinggun.com, Gates wasn't arrested until after he had shown Crowley his ID (thus proving his identity and that it was his house).<br /><br />The reason why this is important is that by this point, Crowley's fellow officers had arrived on the scene (specifically Off. Carlos Figueroa).<br /><br />And since Gates was continuing to verbally challenging Crowley in front of his peers (as well as a crowd of onlookers), it becomes obvious that Crowley basically arrested Gates for "contempt of cop".<br /><br />That to me just shows that the whole confrontation was nothing more than two grown men having a "big dick" contest. That's inexcusable for both of them...<br /><br />However, the big difference between Crowley and Gates is that Crowley is the public servant here! And that while Gates may have been unpleasant, Crowley is the one with the responsibility to use the power of his office judiciously.<br /><br />No one likes being called out by someone else, but Crowley should have just "manned up" and walked away. But he couldn't do that however, because his ego got in the way of him being able to do his job properly. Thus President Obama was correct – he acted stupidly.<br /><br />I don't think Crowley ever expected the Gates' arrest to stick. I think he just did it to try and put Gates "in his place". The ultimate one-up-manship. Call it "town vs. gown" politics. Or call it "racial profile". Regardless of the source, it’s the real injustice here…<br /><br />-Bill the Lizard<br /><br />http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2009/0723092gates1.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-76385201481397943392009-07-28T11:51:19.798-05:002009-07-28T11:51:19.798-05:00Dead on article
After the smoke has cleared we are...Dead on article<br />After the smoke has cleared we are finding out that the truth lies somewhere in between Gates version and the officer version of the story. Perhaps they both had attitudes which made a situation which could have been resolved in a few minutes escalate into Gatesgate. <br />I also agree that this evolving into a case more about class and privilege than simply race.williedynamitehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16191669404414532776noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-69723092501806160112009-07-27T22:31:50.044-05:002009-07-27T22:31:50.044-05:00I also wrote about testosterone and class being a ...I also wrote about testosterone and class being a much of this situation as race. But even more than that is the issue of State power. Forget the "teaching moment" about race. I know how that story will end. What about a national conversation about the powers and limits of our government towards its citizens? Especially following the fiasco to free society that was the GWB presidency.<br /><br />Also, can we please stop characterizing a 58 year old man as a "senior citizen"? This request comes from someone almost in Dr. Gate's decade herself! LOLPPR_Scribehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11595767225403599855noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57113078446695664.post-55221379883858775792009-07-27T14:02:06.736-05:002009-07-27T14:02:06.736-05:00Buhbajangal,
Clarifications, some minor, others ...Buhbajangal, <br /><br />Clarifications, some minor, others not... <br /><br />Gates did not 'forget' his keys. He returned from a recent trip to China to find his front door inoperable. It was jammed, stuck, wedged and not opening. He went 'round the back, turned off the alarm and tried to open the door from the inside. That too didn't work. He then tried, with his driver, a black man, considerably larger than hisself, to force the door open. Concerned citizen, not a neighbor, worked for some Harvard publication, phones in the call. <br /><br />Gates has a large number of friends who are black. Such friends include Oprah Winfrey (about whom he's written a book), Charles Ogletree, (who is representing him) and Cornel West. All of whom have the wherewithal to summer at the Vineyard, no doubt, but are hardly defined by that characteristic alone. I understand you're insistence that he not be termed a radical. OK. But in trying to tamp that push, you've pushed too far in the other direction. <br /><br />At the time of the arrest, Skip Gates was suffering from a bronchial infection that affected his breathing... which is only pointed out to say, under those conditions, there's a limit to how 'uppity' and 'belligerent' a fella can git... 'Specially if he's short, nearing 60, walks with a cane and maybe hits 150 lbs soaking wet.<br /><br />People are under the impression that Gates got 'uppity' because he used the phrase, "Do you know who I am?"... which, under most any other circumstances, can be translated as "Do you know who I think I am?"... but here translates to "Do you see the irony in profiling ME?" If I see a tall black man and challenge him to a game a hoops and he answers "Do you know who I am?" Well, if he's Kevin Garnett, then the question is legit, no... 'Cause I'm not Larry Bird.<br /><br />Cop arrests wheezing, hobbling, senior citizen for 'disturbing the peace' and you try to see both sides... Hmm. The impulse to do that is commendable but, in this instance, counterproductive.spongefrobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17751641689782496990noreply@blogger.com