Quote:
Originally Posted by KSigkid
Agreed on much of this. As KSigRC alluded, the neighborhood is a very affluent one, filled mostly with Harvard faculty, white collar professionals (lawyers, doctors, businesspeople), and probably a few of the old-money Cambridge families. I think the house itself is Harvard-owned, and some of the other houses on that street are owned and provided to faculty. I would also imagine that his neighbors knew that he lived in the area.
The NYT article doesn't really make clear the order of things; I could understand him being frustrated and pretty upset that people were saying he didn't belong in his home. His reaction is also what I would expect from anyone who is famous, prominent or powerful within the community - someone less famous and less prominent (white or black) would have probably been more likely to just go along with the police questioning.
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It's weird. Last night, you could read the police report for yourself online, but I can't find it today. I was aware I was reading only one side of the event, but I'm pretty sure that's where I read that the officer encouraged Gates to come outside. Maybe I'm misremembering.
And now, I'm about to stray into stereotypes of people I don't know:
When I think of African-American intellectuals, Henry Louis Gates would have been last on my list (not that it's a long list) of who I'd expect to flip out in a potentially ambiguous situation. Cornel West, sure. Houston Baker, sure. But I think of Henry Louis Gates as the patient, ever cautious, as likely to examine his own biases as accuse someone else, kind of guy.
But if I had just returned by cab from the airport after a flight from China, I'd probably not be at my emotional best either.