July 2009

Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. was arrested by Cambridge, Massachusetts officer James Crowley at his own home after a neighbor called police to report a break-in. Gates had forced his own door after a trip abroad. He was charged with disorderly conduct, charges later dropped. President Obama commented the police had 'acted stupidly,' triggering a national debate, and hosted a 'beer summit' at the White House.

The scholar's arrest at his own home sparks a national conversation on policing.