When is racial profiling not racial profiling? When the facts or circumstances fail to fit the accepted definition.
In 1999, the Oxford American Dictionary (OAD) provided a definition of racial profiling for the first time. “Racial profiling: an alleged police policy of stopping and searching vehicles driven by people from particular racial groups.” In 2005 the ACLU provided the broader definition as follows, "Racial Profiling" refers to the discriminatory practice by law enforcement officials of targeting individuals for suspicion of crime based on the individual's race, ethnicity, religion or national origin. Criminal profiling, generally, as practiced by police, is the reliance on a group of characteristics they believe to be associated with crime… Racial profiling does not refer to the act of a law enforcement agent pursuing a suspect in which the specific description of the suspect includes race or ethnicity in combination with other identifying factors.” Intent is a key element in evaluating this circumstance. It does not appear by any of the facts as stated that Sgt. Crowley focused on, targeted or arrested Dr. Gates based upon his race (human), ethnicity, religion, or national origin.
One unfortunate outcome of the Dr. Henry Louis “Skip” Gates Jr. arrest in Cambridge, MA has been a rush to judgment by many who should know better. To immediately place Dr. Gates’ unfortunate arrest into the category of “racial profiling” does a great disservice to the volumes of cases that fit the accepted definition.
Sgt. Crowley was not passing by Dr. Gates’ home and upon seeing a Black man in a White neighborhood decided to investigate this seemingly strange occurrence. Sgt. Crowley was responding to a reported breaking and entering at Dr. Gate’s residence. Most police officers will tell you, safety first; better to be tried by twelve than carried by six. Sgt. Crowley’s primary concern was to ensure that there were no perpetrators on the scene and that the gentleman that he encountered (Dr. Gates) had every right to be there. It is also important to have some understanding of police procedure in these types of situations before passing judgment on what transpired.
At one point Dr. Gates is alleged to have said to Sgt. Crowley that he (Crowley) had no idea who he was messing with. Is it possible that this question may provide some insight into how this circumstance escalated to the point that it did? It is incumbent upon all citizens, no matter what their status or station in life to obey the legitimate commands of the police. One must never underestimate the blindness that attends arrogance.
Many are appalled that our beloved Skip Gates could be arrested in his own home and charged with disorderly conduct. According to Dr. Gates, "It never would have happened - imagine a white professor, a distinguished white professor at Harvard, walking around with a cane, going into his own house, being harassed or stopped by the police. It would never happen." That’s probably true, but is race really the reason why?
Dr. Wilmer Leon is the producer/host of the nationally broadcast call-in talk radio program "On With Leon" and a Teaching Associate in the Department of Political Science at Howard University in Washington, DC. Go to www.wilmerleon.com or email wjl3us@yahoo.com.
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3 comments:
do you really expect us to believe that this officer upon dr gates identifying himself and showing that he was rightfully in his own home had cause to arrest a man on a cane..why did dr gates become upset? Possibly because after proving his right to a be in the home he was still questioned...Take in to account the neighborhood and visualize and older white guy an I think you may begin to understand..It just would not have happened. It's not illegal to be upset with an officer..It's racial and we as black people need to stop being afraid to call a spade a spade..
people focus on the true issue here. Professor Gates did not get arrested for burglarly. He got arrested for DISORDERLY CONDUCT. This is a misdemeanor offense in every state where a police officer makes a judgment call that the person is acting disorderly (e.g. refuse to be calm, antagonistic, making threats on the police officer job, etc...)
Supreme Court and other states have passed this misdemeanor charge to allow officers to DE-ESCALATE A SITUATION. This especially is true based on the 1990's Rodney King incident.
On the Chris Rock Show, Chris Rock made a parody of what citizens (especially black people) should do when confronted by police officers.
He stated as a rule: BE POLITE and SHUT THE F*** UP!
Did Gates do any of these general rules during this incident? NO.
He felt by being a Harvard Professor who is black and the fact that he knows the President, Governor and the Cambridge Mayor, he can say whatever he wants and the police officer should just take it.
HELL NO. That is not how this works. Period. In courtrooms, judges have the right to place you in contempt and put you in jail if you act disorderly. Cops have the same right to.
Future lesson, so we can avoid this scenario. always respect and don't yell or confront law enforcement. period.
right on, anon: July 26, 2009 12:58 PM
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