Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Martha's Vineyard

Henry Louis Gates Jr. mug shot from Cambridge Police. (Photo/Cambridge Police/WBZ)


Get to know Henry Louis Gates Jr.

He enjoys the good life on Martha's Vineyard every summer.

Maybe that's why Obama is standing by his man -- he wants an invite.

Here's an eyeopener on Skip Gates. It's a profile that appeared in Martha's Vineyard Magazine last year, "A Conversation with Skip Gates."

The Oak Bluffs summer resident talks about his routines on-Island, racial and class issues on the Vineyard, who will be the next president, and his sexy red tricycle.

Here are some interesting tidbits:

LAURA ROOSEVELT: I understand you rent a big white house in Harthaven. Have you always stayed there?

SKIP GATES: No. We rented all over the Island. I used to like to walk from Oak Bluffs toward Edgartown, because I just love the view from the bike path. And I’d pass this big white house and wonder who lived there, in a house that looked like the White House. Eventually, I found out that it was rented to the Davenports, a black family. I thought, “That’s cool.”
My idea of a vacation on the Vineyard was to look at real estate. We’d take the kids to the beach, and then we’d go look at houses. Then one day, our real estate agent said, “You know the white house in Harthaven?” And I said, “Oh my God, no!” She said, “It just opened up.” I took it on the spot. The last several years, I’ve written a book there every summer. It’s a great house for events too. We had a fundraiser for Barack Obama when he was running for the Senate, and two fundraisers for Deval Patrick.

ROOSEVELT: Don’t you think it looks like a plantation, right off of Beach Road?

GATES: Yeah, that’s what I like about it. I love the irony of the neo-plantation look. As far as I’m concerned, it’s one of the most elegant and historic houses on the Vineyard, and my family and I are lucky to have it.

Well. Clearly, Gates and Obama do have a relationship. He held a fundraiser for him at his house on Martha's Vineyard.

Race colors so much of what Gates says. He was happy that a black family lived in the house before it opened up and he was able to get it. He likes the "irony of the neo-plantation look" of the house.

It's safe to say that Gates is not post-racial.

ROOSEVELT: How would you describe race relations on Martha’s Vineyard? Do you think there is a divide?

GATES: Not at all. In fact, there are a few things that are special about race relations on Martha’s Vineyard. First of all, the Island must have the highest concentration in the world of successful, middle- and upper-class black people. If you’re a successful black person, chances are you’ve raised your children in predominantly white neighborhoods, and they’ve attended predominantly white schools. Martha’s Vineyard allows the black upper-middle class to get to know each other, and it allows our children to socialize every day with other black children – and white children – of their same educational and economic backgrounds. This is particularly valuable for mixed-race children: They don’t feel abnormal for being smart and the children of successful people. This performs a very important function within the African American community.

...

ROOSEVELT: Are there any good things happening now that might help us?

GATES: I love the way Barack Obama has energized the black community and the younger segments of our society. If this carries over to the fall election and results in an Obama victory, then a revitalized citizenry could be called upon in the way that John Kennedy called upon young people to serve in the Peace Corps. I’d like to see a domestic version of that as well as a foreign version.

ROOSEVELT: Is it true that you “flipped” from supporting Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama?

GATES: As editor-in-chief of TheRoot.com [an online magazine with news and analysis from a variety of black perspectives, and tools for ancestry research, published by Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive], I can’t officially endorse candidates because of journalistic ethics. The Clintons are very dear friends of mine. I pledged my full personal support to Senator Clinton long before I’d ever heard of Barack Obama, in hopes that she would run for president. I thought she ran a brilliant race, and I feel her disappointment. There was only one person who could have defeated her, and that was Barack Obama.

I’ve talked to Obama several times, and I like and admire him. I’ve made the maximum allowable contribution to his candidacy. He’s been on the Vineyard two summers in a row, and I hope that that continues.
I think that either of them would be a great president. Because of the luck of the draw, Barack has won. In the best of all possible worlds, they would be on the ballot together in the fall. I think they would be a powerful ticket. It’s historic anyway, just having Barack at the head of the ticket, but imagine how much more historic it would be to have a black man and a white woman running for the president and vice president of the United States. I mean, my Lord, we’d kill two birds with one stone.
ROOSEVELT: Are you surprised to see an African American with a real chance at being president?

GATES: A year ago, I thought it was highly unlikely that a black man would get the nomination. I had no question about Obama’s qualifications, but I questioned whether our fellow Americans were ready for him. It’s one thing to win Martha’s Vineyard; it’s another to win West Virginia. Barack has a lot of work to do with white working-class Americans who have expressed reservations, through their votes, about his candidacy. But if anybody can do it, it’s him. He’s got the magic touch. He’s brilliant and charismatic, and he’s tough.

Yes, Gates supports Obama. He made the "maximum allowable contribution to his candidacy" for president. Obama has "been on the Vineyard two summers in a row." Gates said in 2008 that he hopes Obama returns.

Obama wouldn't want to upset Gates. The police... that's another matter. Obama doesn't need them.

From Politico:

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs dismissed a suggestion that the backlash from police groups could be distressing to the White House, given that Obama has enjoyed a positive relationship with the law enforcement community.

"I think the Fraternal Order of Police endorsed McCain," Gibbs fired back at reporters, referring to Obama's Republican opponent in the 2008 election. "If I'm not mistaken."

What a weird thing for Gibbs to say!

That certainly doesn't help Obama at all to bring up the fact that police endorsed McCain.

Anyway, it's clear that Gates is about race.

Skip sees color, not people.

I'm not surprised that when Sgt. James Crowely asked Gates to step outside his residence, Gates said, "I'll speak with your mama outside."

I'm also not surprised that Obama continues to kiss up to Gates rather than issue a formal apology to Crowley and the Cambridge police department and all police departments.

It's politics. It's all about Obama and his power. It's not about character or what's right.
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Another article on Gates and Martha's Vineyard: "My Favorite Place: Henry Louis Gates Jr."
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Check this out: Obama's vacation plans on Martha's Vineyard.

Obama and family are planning to holiday at a Martha’s Vineyard property of the sort that rents for $35-50,000 a week. Negotiations are being finalized for the rental of Blue Heron Farm, a 28-and-a-half acre pile in the town of Chilmark that boasts a swimming pool, a small basketball court, and even a golf tee. There are four dwellings to choose from and more a half dozen other structures in which to swing a cat. (Chilmark, by the way, was deemed the most expensive small town in all America by Business Week back in 2007. It has since shot up again in value by several hundred million dollars.)

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Related Posts:

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