Where You Sit Is Where You Probably Stand (on Crowley-gate)

Last night’s teachable moment was a bust for me. My grandiose expectations in the days leading up to what was supposed to be a conciliatory meeting were steadily deflated. The meeting, which some viewed as a grown-up way of dealing with a tense issue that was blown out of proportion, was trivialized by many others. Commentators referred to the gathering as a “beer fest”, the “beer summit” and asked foolish questions about the types of ale the men would be drinking. These dis-missives were only the beginning.

Was it just me or was the actual meeting anti-climactic? The only stirring action was learning that Sergeant Crowley appeared at the White House with his attorney and his union representative. After it was all over, I wondered if I was watching the same press conference as Chris Matthews, who seemed to think that Crowley walked on air after the press conference. Seeing a different story than my brethren in White media has been my experience throughout Crowley-gate.

Most likely, if you are White you sided with Crowley. Even if you believed that Crowley may have gone too far, you wanted to see him survive. The will to see Crowley vindicated was clearly drawn down racial lines in the press I followed—your New York Times’, MSNBCs, and CNNs. With the exception of Lawrence O’Donnell, every white commentator who admitted to empathizing with Professor Gates’ and acknowledged how race plays a significant part in the criminal justice system, couldn’t wait to deride the President for talking out of turn on such a local issue. Some even called for him to apologize. Many didn’t talk about how the 911 recording (which didn’t mention race) turned Crowley’s race-riddled police report into fiction. Let’s face it, no one wants to look bad, and that’s exactly what officer Crowley did for many liberal White Americans.

So, after Crowley closed the book on this ugly chapter of his life with a lackluster press conference, his supporters—many of whom shared his race—were eagerly awaiting with three cheers. He was a natural! He could be a spokesperson for Blue Moon Beer! He may even have a career in politics!

Meanwhile, many in the Black community wanted more out of last night. From the outset, many sided with Professor Gates based on their reality of encountering overzealous police officers. Many cheered Obama for saying that Sgt. Crowley acted stupidly. They wanted more public dialogues on race. Instead, last night they saw a white guy get over again. Many saw Crowley, a man who abused the power of his badge, get a pretty cool reward—a beer with President Obama.

The only teachable moment for me was that even in “post-racial,” America where you sit as a race is probably where you will stand on an issue. Crowley and Gates were not the only two to walk away from last night’s event agreeing to disagree. The rest of America, polarized by race, dug its heels into the positions and sides they took on this issue, and as usual, our communities will continue to agree to disagree.

Why America Needs the Rage of the Privileged Black Class

After gathering the pertinent facts surrounding last week’s arrest of distinguished Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates—reading the police report, reviewing Massachusetts’ disorderly conduct statute, and watching the Cambridge police’s press conference—I’m confident in my assessment. Sergeant Crowley acted stupidly.

Leave it up to Professor Gates—noted scholar and documentarian—to unknowingly stoke the fires of a national conversation about race and our criminal justice system. As many of us looked at the pictures of Professor Gates being carried out of his house in handcuffs, regardless of race, many of us could relate to his sense of indignation. After all, our home is our castle. Sgt. Crowley practically admitted that Professor Gates was not a threat when he wrote in his police report, “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." However, he still decided to charge Professor Gates with the same statute that applies to a “common night walker,” “brawlers,” and “persons guilty of indecent exposure.” The only threat Professor Gates presented was a threat to Sgt. Crowley’s ego.

America needed someone like Professor Gates to “overreact” to Sgt. Crowley. The pictures that captured Professor Gates with his mouth wide open and handcuffed, captured his rage as a member of a privileged intellectual class. In sharp contrast to the no-named men and women who have kowtowed to the police to avoid bogus arrest charges, Professor Gates got loud with his arresting officer. Professor Gates’ prestige and stature brought a spotlight to the uglier side of police culture.

We live in a country where some police officers have gone wild and act like adrenaline cowboys. For instance, earlier this year, we watched the video of a Dallas police officer detain a distressed NFL player in a hospital parking lot as he pled to see a dying family member. Two years ago, we felt for Melissa Langston as a Tampa police officer slammed her to the trunk of her car and arrested her as she tried to explain that she was speeding to see her father who had just suffered a heart attack. For anyone who has ever felt disrespected by a nasty cop, Professor Gates is giving you the national voice that you never had.

Our country also needed to hear President Obama’s visceral response to the Cambridge police department. While some believe that the President should not have gotten involved in such a local issue, the reality is that the Gates arrest was not a news story until President Obama entered the scene. Who else could get our media obsessed with the issues of race and our criminal justice system? Who else could make this a teachable moment? Over the next few weeks, we are bound to have more community forums about the police and their relationship with the communities that are supposed to protect and serve. Given the opportunity for improved police-community relations, it’s actually a good thing that Sgt. Crowley didn’t know who he was “messing” with.