[Mears]

“I was bothered by this conclusion:

Gates is perceived as “respectable” for another reason, too: He prefers sportcoats to baggy pants. On that day in 2009, he was wearing a red polo and dark slacks, and still he was cuffed and thrown in jail. No amount of grooming changed the fact that he was a black man in America.”

---

Gates was not thrown in jail.

.

[Nepeta]

“I was bothered by this conclusion:

Gates is perceived as “respectable” for another reason, too: He prefers sportcoats to baggy pants. On that day in 2009, he was wearing a red polo and dark slacks, and still he was cuffed and thrown in jail. No amount of grooming changed the fact that he was a black man in America.”

Gates made a dramatic scene out of what could have been a relatively tranquil event. He could have calmly offered proof that he lived there, but instead went full-blown drama and ran his mouth. His troubles are rooted not in his melanin, but in his need to live out some drama.