The annual Police Week, first dedicated by President John F. Kennedy in 1962, has passed without much fanfare.
That was a sharp break with past years when President Donald Trump turned the White House blue with lights at night, and President Barack Obama repeatedly spoke at the National Law Enforcement Memorial.
President Joe Biden, once a champion of police officers, who helped President Bill Clinton fund 100,000 new police, issued a statement decried as rude by many police online because it fed the liberal line that police are racist killers.
More than anything, police representatives during Police Week asked for a better understanding in Washington and the nation for what they do.
Jason Johnson, president of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, conducted a survey to show just how misunderstood policing is in the nation and media reports.
“When it comes to covering law enforcement issues, the American media should, in the words of fictional TV detective Joe Friday, stick to ‘just the facts, ma’am,'” he said. The poll, conducted by TIPP, “shows that the American public now believes a series of verifiable untruths propagated by some members of the media and activists,” said Johnson.
shootings.pngThe survey, shared with Secrets, found that the public and especially liberals believe police have recently gone on a racist shooting spree even though there is no evidence of that.
For example, 68% of liberals and 79% of black people believe police kill more black people than white. “It’s not true,” said Johnson. “Since 2015, twice as many whites (51%) were killed by police as blacks (26%) where the victim’s race was known.”
The public also believes police shootings have skyrocketed. But in major cities, such as New York, shootings have plummeted 60%.
“Sadly, the damage done by these pernicious myths won’t be undone as easily as it took hold,” Johnson said.
cops black.pngBiden also shares blame, said Johnson. In his actions and words, Biden has turned away from embracing police and fighting crime, an anchor in his Senate career. It was noticed, also, that he didn’t note the death of a small-town Delaware police officer whose funeral drew state officials, including the governor, earlier this week.
In his Police Week statement, Biden praised police killed in the line of duty but also irked the Thin Blue Line with a punch when he said:
Bill Clinton, Joe Biden“This year, we also recognize that in many of our communities, especially black and brown communities, there is a deep sense of distrust toward law enforcement; a distrust that has been exacerbated by the recent deaths of several black and brown people at the hands of law enforcement. These deaths have resulted in a profound fear, trauma, pain, and exhaustion for many black and brown Americans, and the resulting breakdown in trust between law enforcement and the communities they have sworn to protect and serve ultimately makes officers’ jobs harder and more dangerous as well.”
Johnson said Biden’s approach feeds bad reporting on police.
“The breakdown in trust for police has been perpetuated by Biden’s own inaccurate and inflammatory statements about police. The crisis we are facing in American policing, as proven by this poll, is based to a very significant degree on talking points from the Left rather than the actual data. They create the ‘problem,’ which gives them political leverage to implement their ‘solution,’” he said.
And, he added, “Police Week is not a time to advance a political agenda and score points with radicals. It is a time to recognize the sacrifice of brave men and women who gave their lives in service of their communities and to help assuage the grieve of their loved ones.”
White HouseThe misunderstanding of policing is also warping congressional legislation and the bipartisan effort for police reform.
In H.R. 1280, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, for example, Tasers are equated with firearms and deemed “deadly force” weapons.
Not true, said the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives. In a letter to Congress, the group cited medical studies showing that Tasers aren’t deadly and that it often takes several shots to immobilize a suspect.
But by making them equal to guns, the group said that police will instead choose guns when facing aggressive suspects, and that could lead to more injuries and death, not the result Congress wants.
“If passed into law, this language will greatly undermine the utility of electrical control weapons and potentially result in an increase in deaths and serious bodily injuries to citizens and officers alike,” warned the group.
In a plea for better understanding of the issue, the group’s executive director, Dwayne Crawford, said in the letter provided to Secrets, “We respectfully request that the language referring to ECWs as deadly force be removed from the bill. We look forward to further engagement with your offices on this critical topic.”
