Chapter . Gates Arrest

Henry Louis Gates Jr., an African-American scholar, was arrested after breaking in the front door of his own home by the Cambridge Police responding to a 911 call. Sargeant Crowley, the policeman, claimed that Gates refused to cooperate, acted in a threatening way, and yelled that the officer was “racist.” Gates was arrested for disorderly conduct and released four hours later.

President Obama, assuming the arrest was racially motivated, accused the Cambridge police of acting stupidly, then backtracked after suffering from criticism in the media and learning more about the case. The world watched as the President sat down for a beer with both Gates and Crowley in an attempt to ease the tension that the incident created. For ...

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