Mr. President, declaring twice that you weren’t fully appraised of the Cambridge situation, that you didn’t know the details of what occurred, but then taking the liberty to declare that the Cambridge, Massachusetts police acted “stupidly” in handling the matter of Henry Louis Gates, is “acting stupidly.”

You then continued to espouse your untimely wisdom that African Americans and Latinos are often the victims of overzealous police, who use profiling to disproportionately detain and arrest minorities.

Who is profiling, Mr. President?  Who is acting prejudicially?  Who is being racist?  You are.  By labeling the actions taken by the Cambridge police as “stupid,” without knowing the facts, you have ascribed your “profile of police” to this incident and that police department and have prejudged the matter.

I abhor racism and have fought to eliminate prejudice from our community lexicon and practice for years, including time as chairperson of the local Urban League – but seldom have I encountered more blind ignorance and prejudice than that which you offered regarding the Gates’ situation.

Remember, Mr. President, brevity is the soul of wit.  A bit of advice for next time, Mr. President – it’s ok to say, “I have no comment.  When the facts are completely discovered, I have faith that the matter will be appropriately resolved.”

With enough advance planning, this could be typed right into the teleprompter.