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Gates Arrest a 'Battle of Egos'

Don't confuse it with poor blacks' struggle against racism, classism

By Matt Cantor, Newser Staff

Posted Jul 23, 2009 8:58 AM CDT

(Newser) – Racial profiling may have played a role in the arrest of Henry Louis Gates Jr., but fellow black scholar Boyce Watkins says there's no reason to feel sorry for Gates. At heart, the scene was likely “a battle of two egos,” Watkins writes in the Grio. “What is abundantly clear is that this is NOT the case of a poor black male being exploited by the racist, classist power structure.”

This was a showdown between a Harvard professor who saw a cop as beneath him, and a policeman who apparently thought he could treat a black professor differently from a white one. “The idea that he is somehow the victim of the same racism that sends poor black men to prison simply doesn't fly with me,” Watkins writes. “Gates should be careful about appearing to exploit the plight of black men across America to win his battle of egos with the Cambridge Police Department.”

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (1)]

Cambridge Police Sgt. James Crowley listens to questions from members of the media at his home in Natick, Mass., Wednesday, July 22, 2009. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

In this photo taken by a neighbor July 16, 2009, Henry Louis Gates Jr., center, is arrested at his home. (AP Photo/Demotix Images, B. Carter)

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I might be kicked out of "The Black scholars club" for saying this, but the truth is that I don't feel sorry for Henry Louis Gates. - Dr. Boyce Watkins

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COMMENTS

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Showing 3 of 24 comments

BlahBlahBlah

Jul 24, 2009 5:42 AM CDT

Cops are human and so is the professor. I watched him on TV today simply salivate over the chance to show his face and claim every white cop doing his job in america is a racist (not his exact words but the general idea). It is obvious, even in watching the man speak, that his ego is very bloated. The best thing for all involved is to call it a bad day and move on. You would think that a man with such high educational qualifications would see that all he is doing is fanning the flames. Maybe that is what he wants. I am of the opinion that both the cop and the professor are guilty of trying to see who had the bigger...... well, yeah.

JonmarkP

Jul 23, 2009 6:50 AM CDT

It's hilarious watching all the "freedom" people come down on the side of the Police State. Imagine the same scene if a black cop had arrested Glenn Beck for breaking in to his own home-the right wing zombies would be squealing like stuck pigs.

Shannonals

Jul 23, 2009 6:00 AM CDT

You amaze me urbusted, you act as if you wouldn't be in a mood after a 19 hour flight. I'm quite sure, regardless of your background you would have read the Officer the riot act also.

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Crime & Courts • US

racism • arrest • professor • racial profiling • class • Harvard University • Henry Louis Gates Jr • Cambridge, Mass.

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Gates Arrest a 'Battle of Egos'