It’s Time for People to Start Supporting the Police and Ensure the Tools and Training Needed are Available.
If you’re tracking the news lately, you’ve seen a rash of shootings and attacks across the U.S.
Last week’s incident in Dallas underscores a national epidemic. There is a growing and dangerous perception in urban areas across the U.S. that law enforcement is part of a grand scheme to abuse and vilify inner city populations.
While most of the high profile police shootings ultimately exonerate the elements of the policing community, the process only further frustrates those who refuse to hold any room in their thinking that the shooting may have been legally justified. These folks are just plain angry and no evidence or legal process will sway their massive distrust of the system.
While I could drill deeper into this phenomenon, with these populations often dubbed “useful idiots” by those who seek to stir their emotions and use their unwavering anger for their own gains, I’m focused on another macro trend that needs to be addressed soon.
What I’ve found equally troubling is the growing need for more police officers in urban environments, where the correlates of violent crime are growing rapidly. In these environments, where there is mutual distrust among police and the citizenry is obvious, policing agencies are dealing with inadequate budgets, equipment, and training. This issue is compounded by the need for more officers, essentially demanding that policing agencies hire candidates once deemed as borderline or inappropriate for policing work. As police academies push through a wider swath of the bell curve of candidates, the quality of the police work will invariably suffer.
While we, as citizens, cannot change the closed minds of the indoctrinated, we can call for more and better training, adequate resources, and remedial programs designed to better ensure those who serve have the right training and experience to do the job. As for those of you who criticize the police as a regular ritual, you likely know not the stress or the daily abuse these folks endure.
It’s time for everyone, particularly politicians who often make matters worse, to make room for the idea that your perception of the police and/or of inner city dwellers may not be accurate, and it’s past time to demand our policing elements have the tools, training, and resources needed to do the job.
