It is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated malt beverage in history. This evening, if all goes as planned, President Barack Obama will welcome Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Cambridge, Mass., police Sgt. James Crowley to the White House for a beer-lubricated fence-mending session.
No need here to go over the details of the altercation between Mr. Gates and Mr. Crowley, which have been broadcast, printed and blogged a million times over. But here's how we hope tonight's conversation might play out:
Mr. Obama: "Welcome to the Oval, gentlemen. Have a drink, have a seat, and let's get down to it. The reason I wanted to bring you here is that although we talk about race a lot, we rarely converse. You two men - a scholar of race relations and an officer trained in diversity - probably know this better than most. The fact that this incident happened to you two, in particular, tells me how important it is to have this discussion now."
Mr. Gates: "Thank you, Mr. President. It's important to realize that when this incident occurred, I wasn't thinking of myself as a scholar but primarily as a man who, like anyone else, wished to be left alone in his own home. Whose legitimacy in being there was being challenged. Did that get me riled? Yes. But I didn't threaten anyone."
Mr. Crowley: "Thanks for inviting me, sir. As you know, cops need to make judgment calls all the time. The wrong call can cost you your life. I can't assume that the person in front of me, even if he's five-foot-seven, isn't carrying a concealed gun, or that there aren't three other people upstairs, out of sight. When you start yelling at a police officer, the situation is unlikely to end well for you. I think Professor Gates understands that."
Mr. Obama: "A fair point. Of course, as you're well aware, there is a lot of justifiable suspicion, even anger, among African-Americans over their history of treatment by the police. But there's nothing to be gained in getting mad at a cop - even in your own home. Wouldn't you agree, Skip?"
Mr. Gates: "I was tired, I was frustrated. I was not in the mood to explain myself or justify myself. And it was evident to me that this was a clear example of racial profiling."
Mr. Crowley: "Professor, with due respect, that was your assumption, and in a way I can't blame you for it. But can you see that your assuming things about me - not knowing me - is kind of the same thing you accuse me of?"
