Violence against cops is at an all-time low. Police work is safer today than ever before. Those are facts, but some police academies advise trainees there’s a “War on Cops.” This is a blatant lie, and it’s dangerous, because it may prompt those recruits to pull triggers on civilians when they shouldn’t. A police recruit (and Iraq war veteran) who was subjected to this “training” felt compelled to write an editorial about it. Read it here.
America’s policing is in crisis. A large segment of the public distrusts the police; in some communities, they’re viewed as an occupying hostile force. This isn’t the public’s fault; the police brought it on themselves.
Many of America’s 18,000 police agencies are in dire need of sweeping reform. For years, while grievances accumulated and public mistrust deepened, complaints were ignored and abuse of the citizenry escalated. This can’t go on, or law enforcement will lose legitimacy, and respect for law will collapse.
It’s clear what must be done. Drastic changes must be made in how cops are recruited, trained, supervised, and disciplined. Bullies, racists, and rogue cops must have their badges taken away and be removed from the streets; violent cops must be prosecuted as the criminals they are. Policing our communities is necessary; and these are the steps necessary to restore trust in our police. By inciting recruits against the public they’re supposed to serve, these misguided trainers are only digging a deeper hole for themselves and their colleagues. They’re not doing their fellow cops any favors.