Thread: Police Officer suspended after jungle monkey

Originally Posted by sabang

The Boston police officer who sent a mass e-mail in which he compared Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. to a "banana-eating jungle monkey" has apologized, saying he's not a racist.

Officer Justin Barrett, 36, told a Boston television station Wednesday night that he was sorry about the e-mail, a copy of which he also sent to The Boston Globe. He repeated his apology Thursday night on CNN's "Larry King Live."

"I would like to take this opportunity to offer fellow police officers, soldiers and citizens my sincerest apology over the controversial e-mail I authored," Barrett said on CNN. "I am not a racist. I did not intend any racial bigotry, harm or prejudice in my words. I sincerely apologize that these words have been received as such. I truly apologize to all."

Barrett was suspended from his military duties as captain in the Army National Guard and placed on administrative leave from the Boston Police Department pending the outcome of a termination hearing.

Officer who sent 'jungle-monkey' e-mail: 'I am not a racist' - CNN.com

I wonder if that will be enough to save his job.

And there you have it from the horses mouth, he apologises to the people who have (deliberately misunderstood his words) and explains what should be clear to all who can actually read without strongly tinted glasses, that he did not intend racial bigotry.

If he does get fired and takes it to court he should by normal judicial practice win easy. This should never have been more than his superior having a talk with him about trying to be more careful in his choice of words when he writes to the papers.

The whole furore centers around a few very racist adjectives the off duty cop used in his email. And of course the fact that he inferred he would have used pepper spray to subdue Gates. It was a rant. Possibly alcohol induced. The guy was obviously venting his anger on the newspaper for what he believed was unfair biased reporting. If he has a professional history of racially motivated physical and verbal abuse then I say burn him. He is being judged as a cop for off duty comments which were clearly racist, but may well have been a one of and uncharacteristic of him. I am sure we all harbour some resentment to overzealous reverse racism occasionally. Certainly enough threads here to prove that.

Even the Mayor came out and called him a "cancer" on the police force based on this one email. Pretty strong words to use if just based on what the good mayor has read in the media. The mayor certainly didn't say he had made a detailed study of the officers professional conduct before jumping on the PC lynch mob bandwagon for apparent political reasons. The fact is that if this cop had been such a "cancer" of racism in the police force he wouldn't be there today.

The off duty cop made some stupid racist remarks and an enterprising journalist sought to make it sensational news in a high profile political issue. This thing has hit the international news now. Something that never would have happened if Obama had just kept his nose out of it all.

The whole thing has gone to hysterical proportions in the name of political correctness and now this off duty cop is going to be made an example of, demonized and likely have his career terminated so some journalists and politicians can make personal mileage out of his foolish email.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

Originally Posted by larvidchr

Again this is wildly over interpreted, the Officer calls Gates names because he see him as behaving racist and backwards and as no better than a "Jungle monkey" a scholar from whom he would have expected better, he makes the point that this is a man that is supposed to teach about racism and yet behaves like that.

The Officer explicitly states he is not a racist, and expresses his disappointment in the way the newspaper has covered the story and in Gates as a human being.

You really have to read like the devil reads the bible to be able to draw the wild conclusions that have been made of this.

So they all fucked up with the Gates thing, he was wrong, as everybody including Obamas spin doctors found out to their embarrassment, and he behaved like an absolute idiot, and if his remarks was to be taken serious he certainly would not be qualified to teach about racism, so some race fanatics grab this very thin case to try to make up for their initial fuck up.

Weak, very very weak.

Wait a minute, so the officer used racism to teach Gates a lesson for behaving like a racist but he (the officer) is not racist because he says he's not??

That right there is some 'wild conclusion' to make of it all.

If you behaved real primitive (like the Gates guy did) and I said to you you behave like an animal, that would if you are white pose no problem, if you say to a white guy you behave like a monkey that would pose no problem, If he had just written that Gates behaved like an animal there would have been exactly the same outcome, this whole case is to take over sensitivity on race to a whole new ridiculous level.

By the way congrats with your probation

Originally Posted by larvidchr

If you behaved real primitive (like the Gates guy did) and I said to you you behave like an animal, that would if you are white pose no problem, if you say to a white guy you behave like a monkey that would pose no problem, If he had just written that Gates behaved like an animal there would have been exactly the same outcome, this whole case is to take over sensitivity on race to a whole new ridiculous level.

Yeah but he didn't just call him an animal did he. He used a term that has clear connotations and it's a stretch to ascribe a meaning to it that's not a racist epithet.

It looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck but we're supposed to believe that the duck's a chicken and said "cluck" instead of "quack" and to doubt the ducks word is to be unduely biased and without objectivity, all because the duck's telling us so? Nah, don't think so.

And why has it suddenly been decided that Gates was acting like an animal and "real primative" anyways? This guy (the cop who wrote the email) wasn't even there and from his other statements about suspects having no rights and him being prepared to give him a dose of mace I don't tink he's what you could call a good judge either.

By the way congrats with your probation

Cheers mate.

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

Of that post fully 2/3rds is given over to attacking other posters in the thread and nothing to do with the topic at all. So sorry, who is it that's "running all over and fucking up every thread"?

But it is mostly on topic as I see it.
Which is more than I can say for any of your posts as all you have time for is to throw shit on other people, so I stand still saying that to release yuou and turned you loose on the boards is as stupid a thing as DD has ever done and maybe AA is correct.

And I believe that cop when he says he is not racist, A lot of folks think I am which is wrong, I am not in the least PC and thats the name of that old tune.

Originally Posted by larvidchr

If you behaved real primitive (like the Gates guy did) and I said to you you behave like an animal, that would if you are white pose no problem, if you say to a white guy you behave like a monkey that would pose no problem, If he had just written that Gates behaved like an animal there would have been exactly the same outcome, this whole case is to take over sensitivity on race to a whole new ridiculous level.

By the way congrats with your probation

Certainly a very bad choice of words to get his point across.
If he had used more politically correct adjectives his email would have been trashed as useless for the journo to make any mileage out of.

"I am not a racist. I did not intend any racial bigotry, harm or prejudice in my words.

ridiculous. of course he's a racist, and of course he intended racial bigotry, harm and prejudice with his words......what else could have possibly been his intention when he used the phrase "banana-eating jungle monkey"?

Originally Posted by sabang

I wonder if that will be enough to save his job.

highly unlikely....and deservedly so. this guy has no business serving the people of boston as a 'peace officer'. in fact, i hope the prick is brought up on charges for inciting racial hatred. and they should kick his racist ass out of the military as well.

Originally Posted by larvidchr

the people who have (deliberately misunderstood his words) and explains what should be clear to all who can actually read without strongly tinted glasses, that he did not intend racial bigotry.

you've got to be joking....oh, sorry that's right....you're the resident police apologist. of course you'll be happy to contort yourself like gumby so that "banana-eating jungle monkey" isn't racist from your perspective.

What is wrong with nigger?? Growing up in the deep south of he United States in ht 1950's, the word used was nigger. My grandmother was a god fearing woman who was active in her church and used the word whenever she talked about any of the local blacks. She was born in 1889 and her father in about 1830. Her father was a practicing MD in the rural south. He had told her that any time you fed a nigger who was working for you, you allways boiled the metal plate and cup before re-using them, and never use the plate to serve a white person. The good doctor said that you never what kind of germs those niggers have. The reason I just happen to know this is I asked her why she was boiling the plate after washing.

^ The White House staff must have a hard job then.

^^ wonder how they got on if the cook was black?

The word that triggered all the furor was not racists in the least.

"Stupid" ring a bell anyone.

Originally Posted by Norton

The word that triggered all the furor was not racists in the least.

"Stupid" ring a bell anyone.

The racist connotations were quite obvious to anyone and everyone who read Obamas comments in the context of the issue. Obama was defending a friend who was screaming blue murder about racist abuse of power by the cops. And Obama did go on to make comments about racist profiling by the cops. His comments were clearly racially orientated and intended as such.

Originally Posted by BillyBobThai

What is wrong with nigger?? Growing up in the deep south of he United States in ht 1950's, the word used was nigger. My grandmother was a god fearing woman who was active in her church and used the word whenever she talked about any of the local blacks. She was born in 1889 and her father in about 1830. Her father was a practicing MD in the rural south. He had told her that any time you fed a nigger who was working for you, you allways boiled the metal plate and cup before re-using them, and never use the plate to serve a white person. The good doctor said that you never what kind of germs those niggers have. The reason I just happen to know this is I asked her why she was boiling the plate after washing.

...

Can someone send a telegram to the Deep South (presuming that they have that technology?) and let them know it's 2009?

Originally Posted by Panda

Originally Posted by Norton

The word that triggered all the furor was not racists in the least.

"Stupid" ring a bell anyone.

The racist connotations were quite obvious to anyone and everyone who read Obamas comments in the context of the issue. Obama was defending a friend who was screaming blue murder about racist abuse of power by the cops. And Obama did go on to make comments about racist profiling by the cops. His comments were clearly racially orientated and intended as such.

I think your analysis is correct. He went too far in his commentary.

Originally Posted by BillyBobThai

IF MY GREAT GREAT GRANDFATHER KNEW THEN, WHAT I KNOW NOW,
HE WOULD HAVE PICKED HIS OWN DAMN COTTON

Something tells me that if your Great great grandfather didn't have a sister then you wouldn't have had a Great great grandmother in your family tree (or should that be family shrub?).

Originally Posted by BillyBobThai

Having just read through most of your postings here on TeakDoor

What, all 11,000-odd of them? You must be a fast reader. Impressive!

I wonder what your fasination/hate/love/jealosly with America is.

It's a fascination with the people more than the country. It's like one giant Dawinist experiment unfolding before my eyes.

Originally Posted by Muadib

What I find interesting is how Prof Gates blew up and played the race card when placed under pressure... Here is a man who is most likely in the top 1% of professional Blacks in the US... Nonetheless, when placed in a stressful situation that could have been diffused by a calm head and articulate conversation, he resorted to stomping his feet and screaming RACIST... Interesting

what i find interesting is how crowley let his ego get in the way of doing his job when he was placed under pressure. here is a man who is one of the top officers for racial sensitivity training.....nonetheless when placed in a stressful situation which could have been diffused by a calm head and articulate conversation, he resorted to putting his ego first and then LYING on the police report....interesting....

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

What, all 11,000-odd of them? You must be a fast reader. Impressive!

We have another friend for BG!

Originally Posted by AntRobertson

It's a fascination with the people more than the country.

Not true . . . there's this bunker on the 7th hole at the Skokie Country Club golf course that always gave me the irits. I hated that piece of land.

Originally Posted by raycarey

he resorted to putting his ego first and then LYING on the police report..

Is that when he stated he is NOT a racist?

Originally Posted by BillyBobThai

Piss Aunty, That is a good handle for you.

coming from a little piss ant island down under, has made you feel a wee bit inferior. Then again, maybe those Catholic priest at boarding school played with your Willy once to often.

Yes I agree, shut the fok up Aunty.