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Sharpton Vows To Crusade For Harvard Prof Gates
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 22, 2009
Modified Jul 22, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 22, 2009
Modified Jul 22, 2009
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Last week, noted Harvard academic Henry Louis Gates was arrested in Cambridge, Massachusetts, after a neighbor described a man trying to "pry" open a home's front door. It turned out that Gates had locked himself out his house; cops claim Gates was belligerent and refused to show ID while Gates claims he did show ID yet was still arrested for disorderly conduct (apparently for allegedly being belligerent, which he denies). The charges were dropped, but Gates wants an apology from the cop, "If he apologizes sincerely, I am willing to forgive him. And if he admits his error, I am willing to educate him about the history of racism in America and the issue of racial profiling." And the Reverend Al Sharpton was incredulous, "I’ve heard of driving while black, and I’ve heard of shopping while black. But I’ve never heard of living in a home while black." The Harlem minister added he would fight for Gates, "If this can happen at Harvard, what does it say about the rest of the country? Henry Louis Gates is the pre-eminent African-American scholar in the country. If they can do this to him, imagine what they can do to a kid in Roxbury."
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harvard
Henry Louis Gates Jr.
reverend al sharpton
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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