That he's invited both the disputants to meet at the White House to reconcile the situation between them, even though the D.A. has dropped the charges against the Professor. This is definetly not standard practice for the President of the United States to involve the White House something of this nature.
According to the reports I have read, the Officer feels he followed standard police procedure and has nothing to appologize for. The Professor apparently feels he has been wronged and demands an apology. The issue then, it whether or not standard police procedure is racist in nature? Or was it violated in dealing with this specific incident. Both of which are matters that should be handled by the Judicial Branch, not the Executive Branch, as they pertain to matters of law and law enforcement.
Yes, I agree that race relations, institutional racism, and police/minority relationships are matters of national interest and conscience. Such matters affect me in my daily life, just like they affect everyone. I simply find this move by the President unusual, and I would not have expected any President to have made such an offer. The state governor, the City Mayor, perhaps, but it strikes me as unusual for the President to get involved in such an incident in any way, as similar incidents happen on a daily basis, and disputes are settled without White House involvement. So why now?
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ninetydegrees
no subject
on 2009-07-29 03:40 pm (UTC)According to the reports I have read, the Officer feels he followed standard police procedure and has nothing to appologize for. The Professor apparently feels he has been wronged and demands an apology. The issue then, it whether or not standard police procedure is racist in nature? Or was it violated in dealing with this specific incident. Both of which are matters that should be handled by the Judicial Branch, not the Executive Branch, as they pertain to matters of law and law enforcement.
Yes, I agree that race relations, institutional racism, and police/minority relationships are matters of national interest and conscience. Such matters affect me in my daily life, just like they affect everyone. I simply find this move by the President unusual, and I would not have expected any President to have made such an offer. The state governor, the City Mayor, perhaps, but it strikes me as unusual for the President to get involved in such an incident in any way, as similar incidents happen on a daily basis, and disputes are settled without White House involvement. So why now?