On July 16th Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested by a Sergeant of the Cambridge Massachusetts Police Department for Disorderly Conduct. The case stirred nationwide attention this past week when President Obama commented on it. The President stated that the Cambridge Police Department had acted “stupidly” in reference to the arrest of Gates. It is obvious now, that the president should not have responded about this incident during a presidential press conference until he had all the facts. We should not single out the president however in his quick “uninformed” assessment of the arrest, because the current Governor of Massachusetts, Devel Patrick, took it a step further in the area of uninformed media response when he stated the arrest of Professor Gates was “Every Blackmans nightmare.” Both have since “toned” down their initial thoughts.

Race relations have been a huge issue in this country since its inception. America had a civil war with slavery being a central causation. In 1955 Rosa Parks was arrested in Montgomery Alabama for refusing to give up her seat to a white person on a city bus. Segregation of schools lasted until 1954. Virginia and South Carolina had laws preventing the marriage between blacks and whites until 1967. I would be the last to state that I am proud of all of America’s history, but I will always state that I am proud to be an American. All can say that America has experienced periods of inequality and injustice in its history, but no one can say that America has not attempted to learn from its past and correct its mistakes. And as some men have shown their pettiness and cruelty by acts of racism and prejudices, others have stood up and fought and died for the rights of all humans regardless of their ethnicity. Many whites were involved in the civil rights movement along with its black leaders, just as many non-whites have fought in the defense of America and have sacrificed much for this great country. Every time an incident happens that stirs great debate, we as Americans have to look upon the incident and judge it by the facts and not by emotion.

I believe President Obama, or Governor Patrick, should not have commented on the Gates incident until both had a firm grasp of the facts surrounding the case. Professor Gates is a friend of President Obama and I am sure he is a very good man, but that does not eliminate the fact that on July 16th Professor Gates could have been wrong for his actions. News reports tell us that both President Obama and Governor Patrick attempted to call Gates after the incident. There is nothing wrong with either of them giving a friend a call to offer support, but it is wrong to have emotion and uninformed comments made to media when both are expected to be leaders, and ensure that no one is judged erroneously. I believe the facts of the case have shown to most that Professor Gates lost emotional control during the incident and Sergeant James Crowley acted appropriately. Sergeant Crowley’s arrest has been supported by his department, and officers who were on the scene to include a black officer, Sergeant Leon Lashley.

President Obama has since spoken with Sergeant Crowley and an invitation to the white house may be extended to Crowley and Gates to discuss this matter with the President. I can understand why the Cambridge Police Chief may want to discuss it, the Major of Cambridge, or even Devel Patrick the Governor, but I can’t understand why the president wants to continue to address this matter. President Obama should just be honest and say he was wrong for speaking about the incident before he got the facts straight. Professor Gates will get his day in court and if need be a jury of his peers will decide his guilt or innocence based on the facts of the case. What will the president accomplish at the white house? It is an on-going case and I don’t know if it would be wise for Sergeant Crowley or the City of Cambridge to allow him to travel to the white house to discuss it. Professor Gates has secured an attorney, Charles Ogletree. Will Mr. Ogletree be there also? It is just ridiculous on how this has grown from a regional arrest and dispute to a nationwide, presidential matter.

I am in no way stating that complaints of police misconduct are never justified. We all know that the police profession is just like any other and has police officers that do wrong. For many years I have known and been acquainted with police officers, and I can truthfully say that the majority are good dedicated people that only want to serve the public the best they can. In everything that we have read concerning Sergeant Crowley it seems that he is not a bad cop, but rather the image of what a cop should be. He has a meritorious career and is well respected by his peers. He should not be judged by his actions as a “white” officer, but be judged by his actions as a “police” officer and on the totality of circumstances that are involved in the incident. Professor Gates was wrong. He acted in a manner that seems to have violated Massachusetts law and Sergeant Crowley acted as any sworn police officer should; he did his duty and made a lawful and needed arrest. The President of the United States should get the facts straight before passing judgment or rendering an opinion on things he evidently knows very little about, or maybe he should just stay out of it and concentrate on two wars, the economy, and over-hauling the health care system. Professor Gates deserves his day in court, but not his day at the white house. Right or wrong, that’s the way A.P. American sees it. Yeah baby!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!