There is one thing I would like to mention before I proceed with this story. Evidently, it is police policy when called to a house on a possible break-in to ask the homeowner or whoever they find in the house to come outside with them. Historically they have found that if there is a hostage situation they are not aware of, that is the most efficient way to begin to deal with it.
There are two stories in the Boston Herald today about the political fallout of the Professor Gates arrest. The first Boston Herald article deals with the fact that the arrest tapes and 911 call tapes have been released. The second Boston Herald article deals with the fact that the 911 call tape shows that race was never an issue--the caller had no idea what race the men she saw breaking into the house were--she was simply concerned because there had been a number of break-ins in the neighborhood recently.
I have listened to the arrest tape. You can google it on the internet. It really is not conclusive other than to show that Officer Crowley was very calm, but very concerned about the lack of cooperation on the part of Professor Gates. Professor Gates was not acting as the resident of the house might be expected to act under the circumstance, and I suspect that Officer Crowley was suspicious that something was amiss. The tapes show Officer Crowley following police procedures very calmly and making sure he had back-up.
It is my opinion that Professor Gates needs to admit he was being an idiot and apologize to Officer Crowley. Anything other than his apology does nothing but encourage racism in this counrty--not help end it!
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