Prof. Henry louis gates arrested over 'racism'

Henry Louis Gates arrested and charged at home

Henry Louis Gates, Jr., the Harvard professor was arrested for disorderly conduct Thursday on July 16, 2009 at 12:44 a.m. at his home in Cambridge, Mass. Gates was arrested at his home after trying to break down his door, and that he blamed the arresting officers of “racism”, AP report says.

Henry Louis Gates, a professor, author and television personality had actually locked himself out of his home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. By a “white female” who had seen two black men with backpacks on the porch and noticed one of them “wedging his shoulder into the door as if he was trying to force entry, police were called to his house, police said.

Professor Gates inside saw by Sergeant James Crowley and asked him to step out on to the porch but Henry Louis denied and Mr Gates supposedly reacted that “Why, because he is a black man in America?”

In his own home near Harvard, police demanded that he prove his identity but Gates initially refused to show the officer his identification, but later showed his university pass. The police officer said that Gates continued to shout at him, accusing him of racial bias and continued to tell him that he had not heard the last of him.

When police arrived, he was already in his home,Henry Louis Gates's friends said. He proved his identity but was handcuffed and taken into police custody for several hours. He was no longer in police custody and was away for the summer filming a documentary told by Joanne Kendall, Professor Gates's assistant.

A remand hearing has been scheduled for August 26, unless the charge is dropped. The local quarter legal representative refused to release more information about the arrest pending an investigation. To read a copy of the police report, click here.

Source: Yahoo! News