From BlackAmericaWeb
Henry Louis Gates, Jr., said he wants to do a PBS special on racial profiling from the perspective of people who have been victims of racial profiling and from the point of view of the police.
Gates, appearing on “The Tom Joyner Morning Show” to set the record straight about his arrest last month, said, “I’m hoping to use this not for any retribution or recrimination,” but to illustrate how easily things can get out of hand.
“The police report is full of contradictions and inconsistencies,” Gates said. He flatly denied making any remarks about Crowley’s mother, as the officer’s account states.
“I made him very angry” by not backing down, Gates said, “and that’s what the whole scenario was about.”
He said Crowley asked Gates to identify himself and when Gates went to the kitchen to retrieve his identification, Crowley followed him into the home “without my permission.”
“I’m upset because he didn’t say, ‘I’m sorry, sir; we had a 911 report. Are you okay?’” Gates said. “I handed him the ID. I said, ’This is my house. I don’t like the way you handled yourself. I’m going to file a complaint against you. Give me your name and badge number.’”
According to Gates, Crowley refused to identify himself, so he then asked the officer, “Are you refusing to answer me because you are a white police officer, and I’m a black man?”
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