The Video of James Blake’s Arrest Is Somehow Even More Awful Than You’d Expect

Say you’re a tennis star. Say you’ve got a pretty recognizable face, and that people come up to you all the time. It’s understandable that you, James Blake, a former tennis player with 24 singles finals appearances, would feel like you had been spotted amidst the hubbub of the U.S. Open in New York while outside your hotel. Well, Blake was spotted—not by a fan, but by a plainclothes cop with a lengthy history of civilian complaints against him, who thought Blake was a suspect in a case of identity theft and wrongfully, brutally took him to the ground and cuffed him.

Now, you can see the NYPD video for yourself (above).

Shortly after the incident, Blake told the New York Daily News,

“MAYBE I’M NAÏVE, BUT I JUST ASSUMED IT WAS SOMEONE I WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL WITH OR SOMETHING WHO WAS RUNNING AT ME TO GIVE ME A BIG HUG, SO I SMILED AT THE GUY,” BLAKE SAID. BLAKE SAID THE OFFICER, WHO HE SAID WAS NOT WEARING A BADGE, PICKED HIM UP AND THREW HIM DOWN ON THE SIDEWALK, YELLED AT HIM TO ROLL OVER ON HIS FACE AND SAID, “DON’T SAY A WORD.” BLAKE SAID HE RESPONDED, “I’M GOING TO DO WHATEVER YOU SAY. I’M GOING TO COOPERATE. BUT DO YOU MIND IF I ASK WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT?”
AN OFFICER SAID, “WE’LL TELL YOU. YOU ARE IN SAFE HANDS.” SAID BLAKE, “I DIDN’T FEEL VERY SAFE.”

Sure, there’s a resemblance between the two men, but it turns out neither of them have anything to do with a crime—the company provided the photo, which they found online, to police, thinking the man had used stolen credit cards. They were wrong. In any event, the circumstances—the non-violent crime, the very casually stanced Blake—didn’t warrant the police officer’s aggressive actions.

Blake’s statement is below.

Throw this on top of the infinite pile of stories about people of color getting wrongfully arrested under brutal circumstances. Just in this instance, there’s a topical tennis twist.