Ethnically Speaking by Larry Meeks

Dear Larry: I would appreciate your perspective and commenting on the incident in Cambridge, Mass., between the police and Harvard University's African-American professor Henry Gates. If you will recall, the professor broke into his own house, and a neighbor thought the home was being burglarized and called the police. The police came and asked the suspect for identification. The professor gave the police a hard time and started screaming and disturbing the peace. The incident ended when the police arrested the professor, but the charges were later dropped.

I can understand the professor's frustration with what happened. Anyone would be frustrated, not to mention embarrassed, to be locked out of his own house and then have a neighbor call the police.

With that said, I feel that if he simply had complied with the officer's requests for identification and had not overreacted, there would not have been an incident. I think Gates' reactions to the situation were what caused it to blow out of proportion. I feel that he sort of brought it on himself.

The police had no way of knowing the professor and needed to see and check his identification. They could not just have taken his word for it. If they had, it would have been improper police practice.

Maybe I hold a minority opinion here, but I just don't think the police did anything wrong. Perhaps they could have ignored Gates' rants once they realized who he was. But then again, perhaps his actions did deserve the disorderly conduct charge.

People say race was involved, but I don't agree. What were the police supposed to do? I disagree with people who say their actions were based on his color. I think the police would've treated anyone acting like the professor similarly.

Please give me your opinion. — Wendy

Dear Wendy: I agree with you.

I believe professor Gates should be ashamed of his behavior. I am in contact with many minority law enforcement officers, and every one of them thinks the professor was grandstanding and baiting the police for his own importance and issues.

You didn't ask, but I also believe Gates is a poor example to the youth of America.

Dear Larry: I am a master's candidate presently working on my thesis. I have been working on it for several years now and joke that I am growing old in the process. I am now 65. I want to use an article you wrote in reply to an African-American's statement that racism is still a factor. You repudiated the assertion that racism is still prevalent. You stated the following:

"Thank you for your letter, but institutional racism is when a society establishes a system to prevent certain citizens from attaining equal status. This system is usually created using unequal laws, regulations or covenants and allowing unequal behaviors of others to go unchallenged and unpunished. This archaic system in America is over. The system is now changed and the door is not cracked, it is wide open. Minorities can live anywhere if they have the money to buy the home, all schools are open if they have the grades and job opportunities exist in every segment of our society."

I noted the date as 2004 at the time, but I do not recall the month or title of the piece (if any) because it was some time ago.

I am requesting permission to use the article, and what date did the article appear in my local newspaper? — Debra

Dear Debra: You have my permission to use the article. I do not know when the article appeared in your newspaper. My column is syndicated and appears in local papers at different times. I do not know the dates of each appearance. In order to find out when it was printed, you must contact the paper.

Good luck on your paper. Please write me again and let me know your grade.

To find out more about Larry G. Meeks and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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