6:26 PM: A San Francisco pastor and former city supervisor announced today that Sunday will mark a national day of reflection and discussion about a controversial incident earlier this month involving a Harvard University professor and a Cambridge police officer.
The Rev. Amos Brown, pastor of the Third Baptist Church in the city, said the arrest of Henry Louis Gates reflects a larger reality of what happens to minorities every day in the U.S.
Gates, who is black, was arrested July 16 at his house in Cambridge, Mass., for disorderly conduct after a police officer responded to a report of a possible break-in. The charges were later dropped.
President Barack Obama has invited Gates and the arresting officer to the White House to discuss the incident on Thursday night.
Brown, who is also president of the San Francisco chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said the incident “reflects a certain bias, and certain historical attitude toward African-Americans” and that “we don’t want the president to feel like he’s out there alone on this issue.”
Obama received criticism for saying in a news conference last week that Cambridge police “acted stupidly” in arresting Gates.
Brown acknowledged that Obama might have chosen his words poorly in describing the incident, but said his comments were “reflecting pain and anguish … over how we’ve been treated in this country.”
Brown said that following the incident, he proposed to a coalition of Baptist pastors that they hold the day of reflection in cities throughout the country, including Oakland, New York City, Dallas, Columbus, Ohio, and Atlanta.
The pastors include Calvin Butts of Abyssinian Baptist Church in New York City, Frederick D. Haynes III of Friendship-West Baptist Church in Dallas, and J. Alfred Smith of Allen Temple Baptist Church in Oakland.
Pastors will reflect on lessons that can be learned, and then allow congregations to tell their own stories about encounters with police officers, Brown said.
Brown related his own experience of being arrested and jailed for two nights in 1961 in Jackson, Miss., on a similar accusation of disorderly conduct and using profanity.
“I would not suggest that there hasn’t been any progress (since then), but we still have miles to go,” he said.
Brown has been the pastor of the Third Baptist Church, located on McAllister Street, since 1976. He also served as a San Francisco supervisor from 1996 to 2001.
12:03: A San Francisco pastor and former city supervisor announced today that Sunday will mark a national day of reflection and discussion about a controversial incident earlier this month involving a Harvard University professor and a Cambridge police officer.
The Rev. Amos Brown, pastor of the Third Baptist Church in the city, said the arrest of Henry Louis Gates reflects a larger reality of what happens to minorities every day in the U.S.
Gates, who is black, was arrested July 16 at his house in Cambridge, Mass. for disorderly conduct after a police officer responded to a report of a possible break-in. The charges were later dropped.
President Barack Obama has invited Gates and the arresting officer to the White House to discuss the incident on Thursday night.
Brown, who is also president of the San Francisco chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, said the incident “reflects a certain bias, and certain historical attitude toward African-Americans” and that “we don’t want the president to feel like he’s out there alone on this issue.”
Brown said various congregations will discuss the incident in cities throughout the country, including Oakland, New York City, Dallas, Columbus, Ohio, and Atlanta.
Pastors will reflect on lessons that can be learned, and then allow congregations to tell their own stories about encounters with police officers, Brown said.
Brown has been the pastor of the Third Baptist Church, located on McAllister Street, since 1976. He also served as a San Francisco supervisor from 1996 to 2001.
