Johnson: Harvard prof provides 'teachable moment'

Last week's arrest of prominent African-American scholar Henry Louis Gates Jr. at his Harvard-leased home by a white Cambridge, Mass., police sergeant has sparked an intense national debate on racial profiling, placing the distrust of minorities toward law enforcement at the center of the dispute.

When news first broke of Gates' arrest for disorderly conduct on his front porch after returning from a trip to China, sides were quickly taken as supporters of Gates contended Sgt. James Crowley deliberately profiled him.

Crowley was responding to a call from a woman who said she saw "two black males" with backpacks trying to break in the front door of Gates' home. When the police arrived, Gates already was inside.

Accounts of what happened next differ greatly. According to the report Crowley filed, when he told Gates he was investigating a possible break-in, Gates shouted, "Why, because I'm a black man in America?" Crowley also claims in his report that Gates initially did not provide identification and accused him of racial bias.

Gates, on the other hand, says he immediately showed his Harvard ID and driver's license as proof of his residency. Gates admits he was angry, but maintains he didn't yell at Crowley while repeatedly asking for the officer's badge number. This action appears to be the primary reason for Gates' arrest, as he was cited for "loud and tumultuous behavior in a public space" and charged with disorderly conduct.

Charges against Gates were subsequently dropped, but the firestorm surrounding this incident is continuing to escalate. President Barack Obama said at a news conference on health care reform that Cambridge police acted "stupidly." That remark offended the Fraternal Order of Police and prompted the National Republican Senatorial Committee to buy an ad on the "Drudge Report" Web site questioning Obama's criticism of Cambridge authorities.

In the wake of all the attention Gates' arrest has garnered in the national media and on newspaper forums, I am hoping that we might make some inroads toward addressing the stereotypical nature of racial profiling, and mending the heavily strained relationship between police and minorities.

There is no doubt that racial profiling is a serious proble

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