Quote:
Originally Posted by xxxdesign-net
First of, when a 70yo man, well dressed, well spoken open the door.. is asked to step outside by a cop, confused he protests, the police should adjust to the non-threatening situation, communicate with the guy to try to find a way to get the info he needs... The guy isn't going anywhere... For you to claim that it would have been perfectly fine to arrest him on the spot for protesting a little is craziness...
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Notice carefully that Gates never says in that particular statement to The Root what he initially said while the officer was explaining why he was there
"I told him that I was "Sgt. Crowley from the Cambridge Police" and that I was "investigating a report of a break in progress" at the residence. While I was making this statement, Gates opened the front door and exclaimed "why, because I'm a black man in America?".
THEN
"I then asked Gates if there was anyone else in the residence. While yelling, he told me that it was none of my business and accused me of being a racist police officer. I assured Gates that I was responding to a citizen's call to the Cambridge Police and that the caller was outside as we spoke. Gates seemed to ignore me and pick up a cordless telephone and dialed an unknown telephone number. As he did so, I radioed on channel 1 that I was off in the residence with someone that appeared to be a resident but very uncooperative. I then overheard Gates asking the person on the other end of his telephone call to "get the chief" and "what's the chief's name?". Gates was telling the person on the other end of the call that he was dealing with a racist police officer in his home. Gates then turned to me and told me that I had no idea who I was "messing" with and that I had not heard the last of it. While I was led to believe that Gates was lawfully in the residence, I was quite surprised and confused with the behavior he exhibited toward me. I asked Gates to provide me with photo identification so that I could verify that he resided at # Ware Street and so that I could radio my findings to ECC. Gates initially refused, demanding that I show him identification but then did supply me with a Harvard University Identification card. Upon learning that Gates was affiliated with Harvard, I radioed and requested the presence of the Harvard University Police.
Gates knew the routine and was quite aware that he had a sympathetic public ear as an older black man. If the situation really did go down as flowery on his end as he "described" in The Root article, the officer would have been on suspension already.
All Gates is doing at this point is using the publicity to drum up support for another one of his documentaries, because, in truth every Black man who has every been truly profiled by the police would disown Gates for trying to represent them. He doesn't represent mainstream young Black men in the least.
Obama screwed up in defending his boy and Gates screwed up and was rightfully arrested.
He doesn't and should not get a pass from being taken in custody for being black, old and ornery.