Gates Arrest Not About Race But Free Speech

The New York Times ^ | November 19, 1997 | Deborah Sontag and Dan Barry

[parsifal]

After dropping her young daughter with a baby sitter, Taquana Harris rushed to her hostess job at the fashionable Bowery Bar one night last February, her leopard-print evening gown sweeping elegantly through the dark, icy streets of the East Village. Then a strange woman crudely grabbed her by the arm and demanded to know what she had done with the drugs.

Within seconds, Ms. Harris recalled, she found herself pinned to the steel grating of a bodega by two plainclothes officers engaged in a neighborhood drug sweep.

[NativeSon]

I do not believe Gates was arrested because of race and if it was because of “disrespect” or “talking back” then yes, we have a much bigger problem.

[Paladin2]

"...needed a cain.."

He looks like he was raisin cain. ;-)

[parsifal]

I’m not taking any flak from you! You ought to be ashamed of yourself! How could any self-respecting Freeper let his ammo run low?

Oh, BTW, I was pardoned.

parsy.

[Mears]

As the mother of a 16 year NYPD member that article annoyed the heck out ot me.

The Times gave about 10 stories of police overreacting to people mouthing-off to them,and yet there are about 40,0000 members of the department.

It would be nice to read a comlimentary story once in a while.

[Clock King]

''You don't talk to police officers the way that you did.''

Yea, cause they be da' overlords, and youse little people betters tow da' line!

[dragnet2]

This isn't the big issue here. The issues here is the biased comments from the President of the Untied States, when he admitted himself, he did not have all the facts, and then went on to comment about how Latinos and Blacks are victims or police racism, and are pulled over for no reason.

How is it possible, that the President admitted he knew Gates, admitted he was biased, admitted he did not know the facts, yet then made one sided comments?

Comments that were only meant to fan the embers of racial tensions.

[parsifal]

How true. I can’t stand to see this thing become about race. The cops are equal opportunity *ssholes a lot of the time.

parsy.

[roses of sharon]

Yea! Let's teach our kids to fight back! Give the cop a piece of your mind! Yea! Argue with the police, if your pissed off at a cop, call him names, argue, yell at the top of your lungs! Yea!

[parsifal]

Cops do have a hard job. They also have a lot of power, and sometimes they over do the heck out of it. They create a lot of their own problems.

It is one thing to be a wuss, which could be lethal in this job, and another thing to be a bully.

parsy

[Paladin2]

I heard that this morning over the web. It was a great, lengthy interview of the type a real journalist might do.

[elder5]

I have watched a documentary by Mr. Gates on PBS and thought that he was a very decent and educated man....This crap has really turned my opinion of him.

[parsifal]

So, as good little freepers, let us all help to take the “race” out of this issue. Remember, the police of today may be the guys grabbing our guns tomorrows or the guys enforcing hate speech laws.

pasy.

[Gator113]

Hanging my head in shame.....

[parsifal]

I think Gates was a complete jerk and ought to be ashamed of his behavior. But it wasn’t against the law, and he should not have been arrested. And it sure ain’t about race.

parsy

[Paladin2]

Gates problem came with leaving his house to continue to hassle the cop(s).

[parsifal]

Oh, I guess we all screw up sometimes. You’re forgiven. And, if you promise not to tell anyone, I misplaced the clip to my semi-automatic 22 pistol. Woodsman Colt. Good thing I have backup.

parsy.

[parsifal]

Yep, at that point, they could arrest him without a warrant.

parsy

[saquin]

He followed them onto the sidewalk...

Wrong. Did you read the police report? Gates never left his own front porch until dragged off it in handcuffs.

[parsifal]

And how about the cop who shot the family dog in Tennessee. And the nutso cop in Oklahoma who choked the EMT.

parsy

[saquin]

Gates problem came with leaving his house to continue to hassle the cop(s).

He was on his own front porch.