Justin Barrett: The Officer is NOT a Gentleman

When word got out about Boston Police Officer Justin Barrett's comments about Dr. Gates, Jr. and the incident involving Cambridge Police Officer James Crowley, I had a feeling that it would be hard for Office Barrett to prove why he should keep his job.

Well, he was fired by the Boston Police Department on Friday.

Health Care Reform Vacation

With all the talk these days in the media about health care reform, I
would think that most Americans, by now, would've spent the 30-minutes
to read the Cliff Notes, but such is not the case when it comes to the
saying," if you want to keep information from people, put it in
writing." (That statement used to be used when referring to Blacks &
Hispanics, but that has long changed due, in part, of the Internet.)

Now that President Obama and familia are chillin' on Martha's
Vineyard, the First Familia is getting a ration of shit for spending
$50k on the week's vaca, which they are paying out of their own
pocket, and spending time away from Washington, D.C., "When he should
be more focused on the Health Care Reform bill", as one Fox News
reporter stated so emphatically this morning.

Well, I think it's good that the Obamas are able to get out of the
Nation's Capital for a bit, especially for the Obama girls.

Maybe the sea air and change of scenery will help President Obama deal
with which side of the coin he's going to play towards this week: the
Conservatives or the Liberals? I know, Obama would probably argue
that, yes, a coin does have 2-sides! But my response is and will be,
you can't please everyone all the time!

So, as the Obama familia chills on MV, I have to wonder if police
officer James Crowley & Henry Louis Gates, Jr. are going to have
that,"iced tea or Kool-Aid" sometime this week? We'll keep you posted
on WIM!

Crowley Gates Case: Flagg that Money

I appreciate the Cambridge Police Department's effort to "learn something" from the Henry Louis Gates, Jr. incident, but to create a committee to review the case and pay a former Massachusetts Turnpike Authority employee a one-year salary of $127,000 is absurd!

Jennifer Flagg, who served as the chief administrator for the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority until July 31, 2009, worked in the capacity of reviewing the Turnpike Authority and the state Highway Department. Well, once her boss, Alan LeBovidge, who resigned in May stating that he had accomplished all that he could at the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority (Read: He was catching heat-in-the-@ss for the Big Dig overspending and the Easter Sunday Zakim Bridge fiasco.).

Ms. Flagg will report directly to Police Commissioner Robert Haas, and the full committee will be named in the coming weeks.

An interesting side to this story is the committee members won't be paid, but Ms. Flagg will collect roughly $2,442 (before taxes) a week, while the committee members get nothing for their time! Hey, membership does have its privileges and Ms. Flagg is "plugged in".

Mass Perceptions

Living in Massachusetts, having grown-up in the Virgin Islands, always invokes the question of, "Why did you move here?", well sometimes I do ask myself that same question.

I know more than a handful of people that either grew-up in Massachusetts, attended college, graduate, law or medical school and enjoyed their experience, to some extent.

Being either Black or Hispanic living in Massachusetts means that there's a history of desegregation and racial tension that is sometimes very palpable. There was the Racial Imbalance Act of 1965, which led to the creation of the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (METCO) program, which opened the flood gates of racial tension of late 1960s, and we can't forget the image that was captured on April 5, 1976, by photographer Stanley J. Forman, then a photographer for the Boston Herald American, that continues to plague Boston. The attack of Ted Landsmark by Joseph Rakes with the American Flag, is still remembered as being a sore spot in the Commonwealth, and was aptly titled, "The Soiling of Old Glory".

So, through many tensions, some major incidents were put on public display for the United States and the world to see; all presented Boston as a city that is not kind to Blacks and Hispanics nor very welcoming, to say the least.

Fast forward to July 16, 2009, and we have the Henry Louis Gates, Jr. arrest by Officer James Crowley, because a neighbor reported seeing two men attempting to break-into a house in Cambridge, MA. Yes, the audio tapes have been released by the Cambridge Police Department and Lucia Whalen, the person that called Cambridge Police to report the suspected break-in, was vilified in the news and media, is now viewed as a concerned citizen, rather than a "racist, nosy neighbor".

President Obama's comments, made at the end of a press conference that was scheduled to address the proposed health care reform bill proposal, were very telling and understandable from my vantage point because I, too, thought Officer Crowley and the arresting officers "acted stupidly" for arresting Mr. Gates, Jr. in his own home, for which he provided identification that proved that he lived there.

On July 30, 2009, the "Beer Summit" took place at the White House between Officer James Crowley, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Vice President Joe Biden and President Obama. Cooler heads seemed to prevail and some talk about the incident took place where, we hope, each person left having learned something from one another.

Now, there's the matter of dealing with Officer Justin Barrett, who sent an email to his National Guard colleagues about the Gates, Jr. and Officer Crowley incident and referred to Mr. Gates, Jr. as a "jungle monkey".

Officer Justin Barrett's comments don't end there. We now know that he sent an email to Yvonne Abraham, a Boston Globe columnist, disagreeing with the opinion piece she wrote regarding the Gates, Jr. arrest and wrote that Gates, Jr. was a "banana-eating jungle monkey." and that she, Ms. Abraham, should serve him," I like a warm cruller and hot Panamanian, black. No sugar."

There is only so much negative news that one can put up with, and, as of late, there seems to be a plethora of negative news, particularly news that involves race and social status.

With the myriad of so-called reality television shows, it's no wonder why websites such as YouTube.com and Vimeo.com have become so popular for children and young adults to post videos of themselves doing things that, in my day, we would be ashamed to have shown or seen by our parents and friends.

Lately, I've been watching alot of national news, but every night I am drawn to watch the local news to see if there's a story that I may have missed in reading on Boston.com or Telegram.com. Nine times out of ten, it's the evening news is "old news" and I gather little new information from it.

When I'm asked about Massachusetts and what it's been like for me to live here, I always catch myself saying that it's "Nice", but what does "Nice" really mean? It means that it's a good place to live, and if you like the constant change in weather, along within close proximity to cities such as Providence, RI, Hartford, CT, and New York City, then it's a good place to live.

Having grown up on the islands of St. John and St. Thomas, Cape Cod is not attractive to me. My favorite part about Massachusetts is the fall foliage, because there is nothing in the world quite like it and I can see God's hand at work.

The winters can be tough, and, especially after this past winter, I ask myself more frequently what I'm doing living in Massachusetts. But the beauty of it all is that I know when my family and I are ready to pack it in, we have some very good locations to pick from.

So, if you ask me about Massachusetts, I will say that it's "Nice", but don't take it the wrong way. It's just Massachusetts has a long way to go to shake off the perceptions that have haunted it for many years and I highly doubt those perceptions will be changing anytime in the near future.

Beer Summit pt. 2

Maybe President Obama will be drinking a Presidente, instead of a Budweiser? Who knows, but I'm sure the conversation will be caliente!

Beer Summit

It all goes down this evening in Washington,D.C.--the Beer Summit with
Officer James Crowley, Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and President Obama.

The media will not be able to broadcast it live, but I'm sure we'll
see some pictures from "the meeting" that will be on the evening news
and on various websites/ blogs.

Cheers!

Stupid is what stupid does

And Boston Police Officer Justin Barrett can be labeled "stupid" for sending an email to his National Guard friends that labeled Henry Louis Gates, Jr. as a "jungle monkey".

So, just when you think we're moving on and having open discussions about race and class due to the Officer James Crowley and Henry Gates, Jr. incident, some not-so-smart people write emails or post comments on Boston.com similar to Justin Barrett.

Let the conversations continue!

Wailing on Whalen

Lucia Whalen, the woman that placed the telephone call to the Cambridge Police Department to report the possible break-in taking place at Henry Louis Gates, Jr.'s home, is now being barraged with telephone calls at her place of employment, Harvard University.

I'm pleased to read that she would like the 911 calls released to the public, so that everyone in Massachusetts and the media will hear that she never used race when she placed that telephone call. It's being reported by Boston.com.

Black Education (Cont.)

Here is what I wrote on Wormtowntaxi.com regarding the arrest of Henry
Louis Gates, Jr.:

I'm glad I'm not alone in thinking the "disorderly conduct" ploy was
just that, a ploy.

As I wrote about this incident on the Worcester Is MAJOR! blog, the
fact that it was Mr. Gates,Jr.'s neighbor, who has lived 2 houses down
from him, that called the police, says something about us not knowing
who our neighbors are in our neighborhoods.

This incident has garnered alot of media, and I'm tired of it now, but
racial profiling, WWB or DWB (read: Walking While Black and Driving
While Black) have been going on for years, and I'm afraid won't end
anytime soon.

We've become such a politically correct society that we don't talk to
one another like we did years ago. The technology that was intended to
"bring people together" has, in some respects, created a further
divide amongst human beings.

Black Education: Cambridge Police missed that class

When I heard the news about Henry Louis Gates, Jr.'s arrest, I immediately recalled meeting the great professor at Bryant College, now a University, in the fall of 1993. Then, I was quickly enamored by his wit, ability to command a room, and for a man that stands all but 5-feet 7-inches tall, he was a BIG man in the sense of intellect and compassion.

I could only imagine and wondered out loud what it was that Mr. Gates, Jr. did that would warrant him being arrested by Cambridge Police? When I heard the news that one of his neighbors, and I use the word "neighbor" loosely, called the Cambridge Police Department to report a possible break-in taking place at a house in Cambridge.

I truly wonder, what would I have done, had I been questioned by police offers while standing in my house having just returned from an overseas trip?

As I prepare to watch Black In America 2 tomorrow night, I think the issue of "profiling" is thrust into the frontal lobe when many think that because the United States of America has a bi-racial President, there no longer is a need to discuss racism, sexism, or any other "ism" that exists.

The entire issue should make great dinner time conversation and certainly the City of Cambridge has some damage control to be done.