I hesitated writing this post but when I see friends posting inaccurately about police shootings I have to respond. I respond because of a few things that I have experienced in my own life. I respond because I get very angry when I see people who should know better, blindly accepting what the media reports.
When I had the privilege of volunteering as a police chaplain I got to spend time with many cops. I played hockey with a bunch of them. I officiated at weddings and funerals. I sat in police cars racing to calls that were often very dangerous: not necessarily for me but certainly for the cops I was with. I heard their frustration about certain media outlets that had absolutely no interest reporting facts because they seemed set on undermining policing every chance they got. That is why I am quite honestly disgusted when I see people posting about the Baton Rouge shooting as if they had all the facts. The fiction shared by family and friends and quoted by media, portrays him as a "nice" family man that "would never hurt anyone." Really? Not so much but who cares about facts...right?
I understand that some of my friends hate cops and want to lump all of them into the same group of "bad cops". Once in a while human beings make poor choices. Cops are human beings. Those of you who today proudly displayed "Black Lives Matter" need a reality check. Ask yourself who these folks (BLM) represent. They have an agenda (clearly demonstrated in the recent Pride parade) and many of you are playing right into their hands. Yes, I am angered and yes I hope it is coming across clearly.
NOTE: I wrote this post before the Dallas shootings.
Something I want everyone to understand is that our cops are not robots. Anyone and I do mean anyone, that actually believes cops wake up in the morning planning on killing another human being are terribly mistaken. These men and women put their lives on the line every day, demonstrated by the police officers that get killed on duty every year. Most have families and because of their profession, many police marriages suffer due to the pressure they face each day. I have often heard the cop haters (I am sorry but that is what I call them) insist that nobody forced them to take the job. Others tell you that cops should have training that makes them impervious to the pressures of policing and if they can't handle it they should resign.
Here's a newsflash that may surprise many: good cops (95% of them) do not want bad cops on the job because those bad cops are covering the backs of the good cops. You have to trust your colleague because nobody else is there to protect you when you are involved in a dangerous call. I still remember a call I was on once with a young cop in Scarborough. It was a knife call and as we exited the car to approach the house where someone had pulled a knife on others, the young cop stopped in his tracks and said out loud: what am I doing? You see I couldn't watch his back because I was not a cop and as a result we waited a few minutes until 3 other cop cars arrived on the scene. What many don't seem to grasp is that our police will become even more united as the media and groups like Black Lives Matter ramp up their negative rhetoric. When they read posts (fortunately not many will) seeing how the people they serve and protect are accepting the idea of the "bad guy being the good guy", they are often devastated and angry. Many question why they are putting their lives on the line when people in the comfort of their homes take shots at them on a regular basis. Yet they will all be out on the streets for all of us tomorrow and that includes all the haters.
Let me share another point that often escapes the cop haters. As a chaplain I would often sit in on what is called the parade. It is the meeting before each shift where the sergeant goes over any pertinent points that the officers need to know before going out on the road. In the room are officers from every ethnic group including Black ones. I can safely say that I never heard any sergeant announce: tonight we are going to make sure we kill at least one Black man. I challenge all of you cop haters to find a Black cop who thinks the majority of cops are racists. They are human but they are also gay, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheists, male, female, Black, East Indian and I could go on. None of these groups are targeted unless of course they are criminals.
It is sad that this fellow was killed in Baton Rouge. He was not an angel despite what the media has said but even then nobody wants to see someone die like that: that includes cops. Read up on PTSD if you aren't sure you believe me. In Dallas there was a shooting this evening where uniformed officers were targeted during a "peaceful demonstration" against the police shootings. Isn't it ironic that all those demonstrators ran for cover while Dallas cops ran toward the danger. They did so to protect the very people who often claim all cops are racists.
Let me finish by stating the obvious. Racism has no place in policing. The Dallas police chief is not a white man. Think about that as you support your local "Black Lives Matter".
When I had the privilege of volunteering as a police chaplain I got to spend time with many cops. I played hockey with a bunch of them. I officiated at weddings and funerals. I sat in police cars racing to calls that were often very dangerous: not necessarily for me but certainly for the cops I was with. I heard their frustration about certain media outlets that had absolutely no interest reporting facts because they seemed set on undermining policing every chance they got. That is why I am quite honestly disgusted when I see people posting about the Baton Rouge shooting as if they had all the facts. The fiction shared by family and friends and quoted by media, portrays him as a "nice" family man that "would never hurt anyone." Really? Not so much but who cares about facts...right?
I understand that some of my friends hate cops and want to lump all of them into the same group of "bad cops". Once in a while human beings make poor choices. Cops are human beings. Those of you who today proudly displayed "Black Lives Matter" need a reality check. Ask yourself who these folks (BLM) represent. They have an agenda (clearly demonstrated in the recent Pride parade) and many of you are playing right into their hands. Yes, I am angered and yes I hope it is coming across clearly.
NOTE: I wrote this post before the Dallas shootings.
Something I want everyone to understand is that our cops are not robots. Anyone and I do mean anyone, that actually believes cops wake up in the morning planning on killing another human being are terribly mistaken. These men and women put their lives on the line every day, demonstrated by the police officers that get killed on duty every year. Most have families and because of their profession, many police marriages suffer due to the pressure they face each day. I have often heard the cop haters (I am sorry but that is what I call them) insist that nobody forced them to take the job. Others tell you that cops should have training that makes them impervious to the pressures of policing and if they can't handle it they should resign.
Here's a newsflash that may surprise many: good cops (95% of them) do not want bad cops on the job because those bad cops are covering the backs of the good cops. You have to trust your colleague because nobody else is there to protect you when you are involved in a dangerous call. I still remember a call I was on once with a young cop in Scarborough. It was a knife call and as we exited the car to approach the house where someone had pulled a knife on others, the young cop stopped in his tracks and said out loud: what am I doing? You see I couldn't watch his back because I was not a cop and as a result we waited a few minutes until 3 other cop cars arrived on the scene. What many don't seem to grasp is that our police will become even more united as the media and groups like Black Lives Matter ramp up their negative rhetoric. When they read posts (fortunately not many will) seeing how the people they serve and protect are accepting the idea of the "bad guy being the good guy", they are often devastated and angry. Many question why they are putting their lives on the line when people in the comfort of their homes take shots at them on a regular basis. Yet they will all be out on the streets for all of us tomorrow and that includes all the haters.
Let me share another point that often escapes the cop haters. As a chaplain I would often sit in on what is called the parade. It is the meeting before each shift where the sergeant goes over any pertinent points that the officers need to know before going out on the road. In the room are officers from every ethnic group including Black ones. I can safely say that I never heard any sergeant announce: tonight we are going to make sure we kill at least one Black man. I challenge all of you cop haters to find a Black cop who thinks the majority of cops are racists. They are human but they are also gay, Muslim, Buddhist, Atheists, male, female, Black, East Indian and I could go on. None of these groups are targeted unless of course they are criminals.
It is sad that this fellow was killed in Baton Rouge. He was not an angel despite what the media has said but even then nobody wants to see someone die like that: that includes cops. Read up on PTSD if you aren't sure you believe me. In Dallas there was a shooting this evening where uniformed officers were targeted during a "peaceful demonstration" against the police shootings. Isn't it ironic that all those demonstrators ran for cover while Dallas cops ran toward the danger. They did so to protect the very people who often claim all cops are racists.
Let me finish by stating the obvious. Racism has no place in policing. The Dallas police chief is not a white man. Think about that as you support your local "Black Lives Matter".
Comments
Post a Comment