Monday, July 27, 2009

Boston Tourists Acquainted with Cambridge Resident, Harvard Prof Arrest and Racial Lines


The arrest of Prof. Henry Louis Gates Jr. at his home and the subsequent drop of charges by Cambridge police were the main headlines on local and national news organizations for the past few days. Renowned African-American scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. accused a Cambridge police officer of racism after being questioned by cops investigating a call about a break-in at his home according to various reports. When President Obama weighed in, that did not help much.

58-year-old Harvard University professor who has been on various PBS programs was arrested outside his home on Ware Street in Cambridge Thursday for disorderly conduct. Police officers were responding to another resident's call that someone was trying to break into the professor's home. When police arrived, an officer saw Gates was trying to get into his home. The officer did not realize that it was his own home. The professor received the help of a companion who was returning with from a trip to China. The officer wanted to talk to him about a report of a possible break-in. " Various reports presented this side of the story, "Why, because I'm a black man?". The conversation wentf sour. There were accusations of being a racist cop.

The remark set off a volatile exchange that led to Gates' arrest. Officer Crowley said that Gates repeatedly referred to him as a "racist" police officer."


(Visiting New York from Boston and Watching Henry Louis Gates Jr. on Timesquare Big Screen)

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