The Soul of America on Ice, President Obama sips and others drink it on the rocks.
An accidental teaching moment The Soul of America- A Story that should never have happen, if was not for President Obama.
Should Obama had responded to the reporter’s question on the Gates arrest story?
What made the unintended accidental story so compelling in popular opinion?
This incident exposed the soul of America via the President Obama.
As I watched him on TV it looked for a moment that he would not take the reporter’s baited question.
Should the President not stoop down to an incident with the legacy of race and police in America?
Why did President Obama respond?
Because he experienced the sting of the police and he knows his emotional sense when one has dealt with the police as a black man and this doesn’t necessarily apply only to white cops.
Should a President of the USA step into the race/cop low hanging Strange Fruit Tree mix ?
This incident that had no reason to make the headlines like it did. But this shows the nexus of metaphor and hyperbole at work, a highly used tactic in today’s headline instant repetitive cyclic pundits driven news media.
On my 15” flat screen TV view; I witness President Obama’s neurons facial expression search his intellect and hesitate for a moment before responding to the reporter’s question. But what happen was historic, for the first time a black man’s visceral commentary was instantaneously publicized world wide.
The reaction by Obama’s adversary was just as raw but on a different level. While Obama’s commentary was based on his personal history; his adversary’s commentaries were based on the premise of “ who was wrong or right and the facts state this was no racial incident because the cops was not racist and the 911 caller didn’t explicitly identify a black man was doing a “B&E” home invasion; the cops were responding to a potential home invasion -this is a public safety matter and nothing more that’s the facts. Although in recent years there have been many examples of false reports by white folks making false 911 calls stating they have assaulted or abducted by a black or Hispanic man.
This matter is an emotional bitter topic for black men who have experienced the over the top reactions by police. Bear in mind that I ‘m person who have traveled to every state except Alabama and Alaska. My experience is the reality of emotion that President Obama is reacting to when he responded the reporters “dodo Gates/Crowley” question. When you experience the police power trip-you never forget it and you have only one option with the cops: be brief, be polite, have your documents, talk plain and never, never, never ask questions !
Here’s my story:
Its 1971 in a small Tennessee town 90 miles east of Memphis while waiting at the car dealer for the owner to open and get my repaired car . The cops from their police cruiser asked me, “what are you doing here as I sat on the front wall of the dealers car lot on the main street around 9pm on a warm September night. I calmly stated with purpose that I am waiting for the owner to come so I get my car; he should be here between 9-9:30; he’s at his son’s football game; he will be here when the game is over. The cop on the passenger side says, “If you are not gone in 10 minutes we’re taking you in”. I repeated my purpose and the cop repeated in a terse tone his prior statement. I turn away and look back at the distant clock, its 9:15 and walk back to the car lot. The owner arrived at 9:26. This is no town for a black man to be on the town’s empty streets at night. I got my car and watch my rear view mirror as I cruise out of town to I-40 west. I survived because I did not continue to have a dialog with the cop. I didn’t debate with him on how ignorant his statement of arresting me in 10 minutes when I’m there to pick up my car and leave this small town in the hills of Tennessee.
Here’s my brother’s story:
1977 in Albany, NY on a winter Saturday night he’s sitting in his park car- doing nothing illegal; a cop approached and requested to see his license. My brother question the cop on the reason for the cop’s request to show his license. This scene transforms into his eventual arrest for disorderly conduct. A night and day later he is released; goes to his car in the police pound parking lot and find his car has been burglarized and vandalized. Returns to the police station, the Desk Supervisor advises him to return at 9pm and speak to the officer who manages the lot. My brother returns to police station where the conversation with the next shift Desk Supervisor escalates into a harassment of Police Officer leading to my brother arrest in the Police station where he is jailed for 5 days.
After many days of talking with my brother about this episode, we concluded he could file a suit against the police, write a letter to the editor, or contact the ACLU.
But could this incident been avoided? Yes, my brother’s moral constitutional rights were squashed but is it worth filing a law suit against the police department?. Could it have been avoided by my brother not questioning the cop and just presented his driver’s license?
Could have professor Gates just shut up his mouth?
Could have Officer Crowley just walked away from a raving cane holding intellectual black man in his home?
Was this about racism? Did Gates logic assume and conclude that a cop that wouldn't back down from a 58 year old cane carrying black man in his own house must be a racist ?
Was the officer’s ego so berated by a cane carrying intellectual 58 year old African American man that he couldn’t back down from?
I’m sure the cop had no fear of nor was physically intimidated by Gates. So was it the belligerent ravings of Gates that rocked the cops ego ?: by the Professor demanding the Officer's name and badge number ?
But the two male egos on the porch stage could not back down in the play, but one has a gun and civil authority, the other has the history and constitution
President Obama let the soul of America shout out: this is what happens to a black man !.
Those folks who are holding to the position that this incident was factual non racial incident or feels that that the 911 caller was demonized for reporting the attempted break in are right to the feel the way do.
They need to feel that their emotion is justified by fact but this fact is a facade for a deeper raw emotion associated with ones persona and cultural conscientious underlying social cultural economic condition, sometimes aptly described as tribalism, which is rarely associated with the USA but that is the way it is when you dealing with a perfect metaphorical storm called “cops and race”.
The 911 caller was just doing the act of a public citizen. Why did she feel so up set about peoples perceptions of her? Why did people reportedly harassed her for making the 911 call?
This is a synergetic episode rooted in metaphor and human ego but the catalyst is the cultural metaphor pertains to race and class subjectivity's, a perfect synthesis of a metaphorical perfect storm.
The Soul of America on Ice with President Obama
The Soul of America on ice where everyone can drink it on the rocks. I thank President Obama for taking the sip, yeah he is a black man in America and also the President. No other President has ever come close on exposing the soul of America. The late James Brown sang a long time ago, “We need a brand new funky President”. Well we got one now !
This is not about wrong / right but about feelings. It would d have never happened if the officer or the professor kept their cool, especially since they are matured adults. In the end,
the cop should have walked a way from crane carrying old black intellectual man in his own home. But the play did not end there which is why I tell the story my father’s story.
In 1974 my 82 year old father while driving did a 360 degree “Batmobile” turn on Tremont street a major Boston thoroughfare in his green metallic, black vinyl top, chrome mag wheeled 1972 Plymouth Fury III with white interior bucket seats.
On this warm April afternoon my father was at the wheel with his black leather gloves, bifocal prescription sunglasses and wearing winter coat when the cop pulled us over. I laughed inside because I knew that the cop thought he was dealing with potentially two young blacks in this hot power car doing a 360 on a major street.
As I waited in the passenger seat. The cop approaches the driver side and yells at my father “ Do you know what you just did!” Ten seconds later my Dad replied “ in a low hoarse voice with dignity and grace said “ What you want me to do, walk?”
Without a word, the cop turned around, walk back to his police cruiser and drove away.
Enough said!
