Henry Louis Gates Arrested

I’ve been reading this headline all day today and am concerned about the reaction it’s getting.  Here are some of the quotes I am seeing:

Jelani Cobb, an author and professor at Spelman College in Atlanta, says it’s troubling on many levels when “one of the most recognizable African-Americans in the country can be arrested in his own home and have to justify being in his own home.” Watch arrest of a Harvard scholar ».  “It’s really kind of unfathomable,” Cobb said. “If it can happen to him, yeah, it can happen to any of us.”

My response:  It’s not at all troubling that Gates could be arrested in his own home.  A police officer went to the house based on a call from a neighbor reporting a breaking and entering.  Upon arriving he asked Gates for identification at which point Gates became angry and unruly (according to the police report).  At this point the office still hasn’t established if the house belonged to Gates…he infact could have been breaking and entering.  It’s also not reasonable to expect the office to know who this is…I haven’t even heard of Gates let alone know what he looks like.

Kim Coleman, a Washington radio host, cultural commentator and blogger, said she grew numb when she saw the mugshot.  “I was not prepared for that,” she said. “To see one of my heroes in a mugshot was not something that I was expecting. … It just tells me we’re not in a post-racial society.”  She said there’s a reason why you don’t hear about prominent white people arrested in their homes: “because it doesn’t happen.”

My Response:  Not being prepared to see one of your heros in a mugshot is irrelevant…it’s like telling me you had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch…it doesn’t matter.  Based on all reports I’ve heard regarding the incident the police office had every right to arrest Gates and infact did.  Had Gates not been unruly and uncooperative none of this would have happened.  If anything, Gates would be the one living in a pre-racial society as he quickly jumped to racial profiling and stereotyping of the office.  Perhaps he should be held accountable for his thought process and decision making skills.

Now, all of that said, the bottom line is nobody knows the exchange that occured at the door.  There are reports form both sides, but it appears to me the officer was doing his job and Gates immediately became confrontational at which point he was arrested.  Seems reasonable to me, regardless of his color, his social status, his employer, the number of degrees he holds, etc.

I was pulled over last weekend at 1 am taking a right hand turn over 4 lanes with my lights off.  I was pulled over at which point I offered the officer an explanation and showed him my ID.  Of course he thought I was drinking which I wasn’t.  Upon our pleasant exchange he gave me directions back to the highway and encouraged me to enjoy my stay in the pacific northwest.  Seems reasonable that he pulled me over doesn’t it?

~ by arleen on Wednesday.July.22.2009.