As Richard Thompson Ford writes in Slate today, many of the reactions to the arrest of Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. in his Cambridge home—and of President Barack Obama’s discussion of the incident at his press conference last night—have been “swift and predictable.” Leaving aside ways in which political advocates have tried to spin the story, it’s worth noting that in Boston, the largest local papers have both seen fit to point out that Sgt. James Crowley, the white officer who arrested Gates, has, indeed, had positive interactions with African-Americans—a fact that should be unsurprising, and that doesn’t really illuminate what happened in this particular incident.
Out on the Web, though, a few commenters have had interesting things to say. Over at TNR’s group blog The Plank, Jason Zengerle noted the shifting power dynamics of the situation:
Even if you’re white, any time you have an encounter with a police officer, the officer has the upper hand in terms of power, since he’s the guy who has the power to arrest you. After that initial encounter, however, that power dynamic can be reversed—at least if you’re sufficiently rich, accomplished, and connected, as Gates is. (If you’re not those things, that power dynamic will probably never change.) Which is why, at this point, Gates clearly has the upper hand over Crowley in terms of power. The irony is that Crowley’s initial abuse of power has now put him in the position of being largely powerless.
And in a post at his blog at The Atlantic, Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote:
I think the source of a lot my reasoning is the cop’s own response to Gates. A lot of us here believe that is possible that Gates was, at least, rude. We also aren’t sure what—if any—role race played in all this. That said, the cop not only thinks Gates was rude to him but he handled the situation exactly right. Given that dude thinks police should be arresting citizens for rudeness, he is not the guy I’d want dealing with the kids in my neighborhood—even the ones who need to be in custody.
Seen any other good takes on the non-health care story of the day? Leave a link in comments.
The aftermath of this press conference confirms my suspicion that most of the beltway reporters and pundits are far too stupid and vapid to be doing what they are doing. Read this link to confirm it for yourself: Pundits unimpressed with Obama's press conference - Melanie Mason - POLITICO.com
One choice bit: "In their morning assessment of the presser, NBC’s political team asked, “Honest question: Is there a point when the president knows too much about an issue?"
Uhhh, no. (Short answer to a stupid question.)
#1 Posted by Tom, CJR on Thu 23 Jul 2009 at 05:28 PM
The Police officers acted stupidly. Sergeant Crowley the house and sees a middle-aged, slightly-built man on the phone. There is no reason to believe he is s burglar. You interrogate him, demand his ID, then continue to question him after he complies. That must have been frightening for Professor Gates who knows there is a history of homicidal consequences that follow such police actions. He is also outraged and accuses Sergeant Crowley of racism. How else can one explain the officer's full press? Crowley then abuses his authority by arresting Gates for "disorderly conduct"--a rougish black hole. Obama's "acted stupidly" puts it mildly. Crowlet was never physically threatened or confronted. "Rude" is what you say about children and subordinates. Now the Boston media proclaim that Crowley has black friends. The Police Union responds tribally, and beltway journalists criticize Obama's description. These responses indicate irresponsibility and a lack of both empathy and logical reasoning. Stupid journalism.
#2 Posted by yehudi webster, CJR on Fri 24 Jul 2009 at 05:24 AM
Any speech that begins with "I don’t know, not having been there and not seeing all the facts,” as Obama's did should end with, “I have nothing to say until all the facts are known.” . But instead our illustrious post racial president decides to play into the race card (typical). How well does this demonstrate his problem solving abilities and judgment when he is willing to provide an opinion on a subject that he admits not having all the facts about?
Naturally, those who are quickest to play the race card are usually the slowest to apologize for slandering people.
#3 Posted by Mike H, CJR on Fri 24 Jul 2009 at 09:17 AM