Looking But Not Seeing (Gates\Crowley) - by Leonard Pitts Jr.

[WillyT]

Looking but not seeing
By LEONARD PITTS JR.
[e-mail]

<snip>

Please take a good look at Dr. Henry Louis Gates.

He is five feet, seven inches, weighs 150 pounds, wears glasses and uses a cane. His legs are of unequal length, his mustache and goatee are gray. He is 58 years old and looks it.

It's important to see Gates -- scholar, author, documentarian, Harvard University professor and African-American man -- because that's what Sgt. James Crowley of the Cambridge, Mass. police department apparently did not do in the July 16 confrontation that has ignited debate about racial bias in the U.S. ``justice'' system. For the three of you who do not know: the incident began when Gates, returning home from a trip to China, found his front door jammed. When he and his driver tried to force it, a neighbor, thinking it a burglary in progress, did the right thing and called police. Crowley responded, finding the driver gone and Gates inside. There are two versions of what happened next.

Police say Gates refused to comply with Crowley's order to step outside, initially would not identify himself and became belligerent, yelling that Crowley, who is white, is a racist, that he didn't know who he was messing with and that this was only happening because Gates is black.

Gates says he promptly produced his driver's license and Harvard ID, that the officer refused to provide his name and badge number and that he could not have yelled anything because he has a severe bronchial infection.

This much is not in dispute: Gates was arrested after providing proof he was lawfully occupying his own home. The police report says he was ``exhibiting loud and tumultuous behavior in a public place.'' That being his own front porch.

Small wonder the charge has been dropped.

And here, Sgt. Crowley's defenders would want you to know he is not some Central Casting redneck, but an experienced officer who has led diversity workshops.

On the other hand, Gates is hardly Sister Souljah himself. Rather, he is a man who did the things African Americans are always advised to do -- work hard, get a good education, better yourself, only to discover that in the end, none of it saved him.

In the end, he still winds up standing on his front porch with his wrists shackled, just like any drug dealer or carjacker anywhere.

Because sometimes, they just don't see you. It's one of the most frustrating verities of African American life. Sometimes you simply know: They are looking your way but seeing their fears, their preconceptions, their stereotypes, that other black guy who did them wrong -- everything except the one and only you.

By definition, racism denies individuality, and preconceptions leave us blind, making it possible for even a man who leads diversity training to look at a small, graying scholar and see a menace to society. If Gates was loud and agitated, common sense says Crowley should've simply removed the source of the agitation -- himself.

Problem solved.

Instead, he called for backup(!) and took Gates into custody. And if Gates looked like a lawbreaker to James Crowley, well, to me he looks like former Lakers star Jamaal Wilkes, pulled over because the tags on his car were ``about to'' expire, like clean-shaven 6'4'' businessman Earl Graves Jr. detained by police searching for a mustachioed 5'10'' suspect, like Amadou Diallo, executed while reaching for his wallet.

And like me, with hands up and a rifle trained on my chest by an officer who later claimed he stopped me in that predominantly-white neighborhood for a traffic violation.

Because I look like Henry Louis Gates, he looks like Jamaal Wilkes, and we all look like some dangerous, predatory black man intent on mayhem. So there is no shock here -- only a sobering reminder that the old canard is, at some level, true.

We all look alike.

<snip>

Link: http://www.miamiherald.com/living/columnists/leonard-pitts/story/1156989.html

Yup...

:banghead:

[dogtag]

1. Mr. Pitts is not

looking or seeing.

[frylock]

3. really?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x3988413

[mix]

6. while Crowley simply lies

[WillyT]

7. Care To Elaborate ???

I think Pitts is spot on!

:shrug:

[damntexdem]

9. Pitts is exactly right, as was Obama. The cops acted stupidly.

It doesn't matter whether Gates reacted 'responsibly,' the police acted stupidly -- abused their power stupidly.

[Lerkfish]

10. um, between you and leonard Pitts, I"m going to go against you on this one.

besides "DWB"-- driving while black has happened to several friends of mine, and I've witnessed it in action.

only white people claim there is no racism.


blacks and people with black friends see it all the time.

As an example, I was in a suburban art supply store. A white teenage girl was the cashier. An african american mother and her teenage son were in line ahead of me-- she and I talked about having a young son and the problems with school lists of art supplies -- nice lady though I didn't know her.
Her turn comes up and She used her debit card which was approved. the cashier THEN asked to see her ID as well, stating it was company policy. The woman shrugged and showed her ID.

Since I was right behind her, I got out my ID, thinking I would need it, according to the new "policy". However, once my Debit card was approved, she just handed me the merchandise. I just looked at the mother, who was not quite out of the store yet, and we shared a knowing glance. I had to DEMAND the cashier check my ID as well, since it was policy.

The mother smiled at me and left.

If you don't see racism in this country, you aren't seeing.

[WillyT]

13. A Buddy Of Mine Had An Afro In The 70's...

and was part of a band that covered rhythm and blues music... Earth Wind & Fire, Marvin Gaye, etc...

We were driving around our own fairly white suburb in his dad's white Cadillac when we were pulled over by the cops for no apparent reason. We had violated no rules, and after checking our ID's, we were sent on our way.

Thing is though... my friend wasn't black...

His mom is half Greek\half Filipino, and his dad was 100% Greek.

His dad also happened to be a rather big shot lawyer, and reamed the crap out of the local constabulary for fucking with his son.

Sometime justice works in mysterious ways, I suppose.

:shrug:

[zbdent]

17. "only white people claim there is no racism." actually, they claim that there is

a lot of racism ... the "uppity negroes" menacing the nice white guys who mind their own business and contribute to society ... unlike the "majority" of the "negroes" ... (actually, I heard a WTAM announcer say "most blacks, but not ALL of them, are lazy!")

and that the whites are the victims of the "racism" ...

[nilram]

20. wow. thanks for posting that. what state was that in? nt

[Lerkfish]

23. ohio nt

[gratuitous]

11. Precisely

Thanks for that, dogtag! I've been around a 5'7" 150 pound black men with a cane, unable to speak clearly due to a bronchial infection, and I can tell you they scared the motherlovin' pee-doodle out of me. I only had five inches and a hundred pounds on him, so you can imagine how frightening that would have been. Doubly so if I had a gun and nightstick. Officer Crowley should get some kind of citation for his actions that night!

[TexasObserver]

12. Sure he is.

[Raineyb]

25. I think you are projecting onto Mr. Pitts.

It is you who is not looking or seeing.

[Diane R]

2. Leonard Pitts is a treasure. I've heard him speak twice in person and he's fabulous.

[SeattleGirl]

26. Couldn't agree with you more, Diane.

I love reading his columns. You are fortunate that you actually go to see him in person!

[TexasObserver]

28. I've read him for many, many years. Sharp, insightful, and dead on!

He's certainly a well respected black man who can speak well for black men in America about racial discrimination by the likes of the Cambridge cop.

[BlooInBloo]

4. Why didn't the cop just leave? Has anybody seen a good answer?

[WillyT]

5. Ego... Power...

Oh... you said, "good answer".

Nope... not a one.

:shrug:

[TahitiNut]

14. He was afraid one of the "real burglars" was holding one of Gates' family hostage.

And, if you believe that, I have a bridge to sell you. :shrug:

[whistler162]

31. Yup... because home invasions never happen!

I know why you are trying to unload that bridge!

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

16. Why didn't Gates just stay inside and call the police chief? Has anyone seen a good answer?

There were poor decisions made all around. The charges were dropped. We all should follow suit.

[WillyT]

22. The Difference Being...

that Officer Crowley can arrest you, put you into custody, and fuck with your freedom, while Professor Gates cannot.

And being members of this "free" society, it is incumbent upon the citizenry to monitor, correct, and hold to a higher standard, government entities and their employees. Especially those departments and employees that can lock you in a cell.

So I won't be dropping this anytime soon.

:shrug:

[Iggo]

24. Damn, Willy!

(Stay down, Nick.)

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

34. You actually prompted me to respond.

Thanks - I was inclined to otherwise let it die.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

33. I was going to leave it at that, until I saw the other response.

As I clearly stated, poor decisions were made all around. The officer's poor decision does not exempt Dr. Gates' poor decision. Both were wrong.

Further, I actually agree with your comments about a free society and the need to safeguard against abuse of power. I share in your sentiment that police officers need to bear their responsibility well and need to rise above the kind of petty alpha-male conflict that occurred on the night in question. Consequently, this is also a reason that I am a proponent of the second amendment, albeit with significant controls in place, as I fear a society where only cops and criminals have weapons, as I fully trust neither.

But that's neither the point of controversy, nor the point of the article or the point of my post. What this article and my comments have to do with are the allegations of racial profiling and circumstances around Dr. Gates being arrested not for B&E, but for disorderly conduct (again, a poor decision, but probably not a racist one and probably not even an improper one, technically speaking). I look at this case and I see two men acting very stupidly, to borrow a word from our President. I don't see hate, I see idiocy and arrogance.

Further, this is an unbelievably mild example of abuse of power. Worse happens hundreds of times over every single day of the week. Is this example regrettable? Absolutely, but to place it so prominently completely belittles the experiences that millions of people are faced with each year and it undermines the cause, in my humble opinion. It's funny that I've seen the Duke Lacrosse case used as an example favorable to Gates in terms of institutionalized racism, because frankly, I see it as an analog to Gates of an abuse of police and law enforcement power (granted, the degrees of abuse involved a vastly different).

edited for typos

[TexasObserver]

8. Leonard Pitts, a well known black writer, gets it.

So much for the contention that blacks don't share the outrage over the treatment of Gates.

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

15. Yeah, and a 20 year old girl poses no threat whatsoever to an NFL player.

Oh... wait. http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=4307274

Seriously, there are lots of rich old people that are NRA members and have plenty of guns.

[WillyT]

18. Kick !!!

:kick:

[nilram]

19. And they're going to have a beer together,

kiss, and make up. I think Gates should sue Crowley's ass six ways from Sunday.

[nc4bo]

21. Very well and truly stated Leonard Pitts Jr.

Sad and true in so many, many cases.

[WillyT]

27. Last Kick From Me...

:kick:

[MellowDem]

29. Pitts proves his own point...

"Because sometimes, they just don't see you. It's one of the most frustrating verities of African American life. Sometimes you simply know: They are looking your way but seeing their fears, their preconceptions, their stereotypes, that other black guy who did them wrong -- everything except the one and only you."

And then...

"And if Gates looked like a lawbreaker to James Crowley, well, to me he looks like former Lakers star Jamaal Wilkes, pulled over because the tags on his car were ``about to'' expire, like clean-shaven 6'4'' businessman Earl Graves Jr. detained by police searching for a mustachioed 5'10'' suspect, like Amadou Diallo, executed while reaching for his wallet.
And like me, with hands up and a rifle trained on my chest by an officer who later claimed he stopped me in that predominantly-white neighborhood for a traffic violation."

Unfortunately for him, the point he makes is against himself. In on sentance, he says how Crowley acted on preconceptions and then later, he explains that his assumptions about Crowley's actions are based on... his fears, his preconceptions, steryotypes, the other white officer that did him (and other black men) wrong -- "everything except the one and only you" as he so eloquently puts it. The hypocrisy is nauseating.

[Karenina]

30. They simply don't SEE us when our mere appearance challenges their

ASSUMPTIONS, nor do they LISTEN when our words do the same.

[Pavulon]

32. Everyone should be treated the same, H Rap Brown and many other people

have just decided to shoot police as well. There are real racists and then there are people who look for racism everywhere. Both are useless to society.

[Spazito]

35. Excellent, excellent column!

Thank you for posting this, it is very much appreciated! It is now in my 'favorites' file.

Recommended, HIGHLY recommended.