Protesting Funerals

A funeral was held for one of the two officers slain in their patrol car in New York City. This is an emotional situation for everyone concerned. I can’t even imagine what it must be like to be a police officer these days. They deal with such insanity and risk everything doing so. The bond they feel with each other transcends even familial bonds. It’s the same as with those in combat. Experiencing the death of a brother or sister is devastating.

And then I read something in an article I could not fathom. Instead of simply coming together to celebrate the life of this officer and support his family, the police chose to protest Mayor DeBlasio at his funeral. In an article from Crooks and Liars, the title says it all: Hundreds Of NYPD Officers Turn Backs To Bill DeBlasio At Officer’s Funeral. The Mayor had asked that everyone stop protesting until after the funerals out of respect for the slain officers’ families. Apparently, that didn’t go over well. In the past, this would be surprising. Now, not so much. The article mentioned something about contract negotiations..but surely that can’t be it. Do they even want a solution?

I’m pretty sure this is obvious to most people, but isn’t it time to focus on the families of these two officers? No one’s going to forget about whatever issue they have. It will all be there after we’re finished uniting for the sake of compassion for others who didn’t ask for any of this to happen. Did they really need to turn a funeral into a pissing match?

A deranged guy kills two officers and somehow it’s the Mayor’s fault? Or is it the fault of protesters? Oh, that’s right..it’s President Obama’s fault. I can’t keep any of it straight anymore. Somehow, I think that the person responsible for the deaths of the two officers is the guy who pulled the trigger that night. Just as the officers who caused the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown, as well as all the others who have died from contact with law enforcement, are responsible for those deaths. Now, they may be able to prove they were justified in what they did, and if so, then it is what it is. Tragic, but self-defense is just that. The recent cases, however, don’t seem like that, and hearing about grand jury decisions that protect law enforcement from accountability is getting old. Something isn’t right here.

Instead of standing up for what’s right, police unions appear to stand up for the officer, irrespective of the truth. If the officer did something wrong, then shouldn’t our justice system apply equally to that officer as well as anyone he or she might arrest? Do police officers stop being citizens? Do our laws not apply equally to them?

And how is it that we can’t even have this discussion without a bunch of histrionics from the police? I watched as a police union president attempted to explain himself to Ari Melber on MSNBC one evening, sounding defensive and silly. Don’t they want their departments to be above behavior like this? Shouldn’t they welcome the public’s desire to see them follow the law? Because it sure feels like it’s none of our business. Except, taxpayer dollars and all, it very much is our business. The only people who should be in fear of the police are those who break the law. Unfortunately, that group has expanded to include potentially everyone else now.

Honor, integrity and respect need to be paramount. The behavior of those who enforce our laws needs to be above reproach. And when the situation isn’t clear, they should welcome anything that brings clarity. If their behavior is found to be lawful, then we must accept that something tragic occurred in the course of doing their job and leave it at that. But if not, then those involved must accept that as well, preferring truth over fear of possible consequences. Besides..when did police departments start behaving like those strange church people? Protesting at a funeral? How does that honor anyone?

Look, we all know what law enforcement deals with on a daily basis. But that can’t be the only valid perspective in the conversation. Sometimes things go too far, and when they do, we need to assess what that was and then deal with it accordingly. Law enforcement will have to be okay with that. We need a strong, positive, trusting relationship with the people sworn to protect us, one that’s based upon mutual respect, understanding and support. All lives matter, as the Twitter hashtag says, including police lives. We should all be in this together, finding common ground, finding solutions, and not turning our backs on each other.