In the wake of five line of duty deaths in Dallas, TX, there has been a lot of words like 'senseless' and 'tragedy' in the media. And this was a tragedy that I personally believe should be classified as a hate crime and an act of terrorism. There is so much out there about what happened and videos and people's thoughts and prayers for the officers and their families, as well as the Dallas Police Department and DART. I am heartbroken for all of those affected by this violence.
As someone who looks to have a career in law enforcement, these deaths hit me particularly hard. I can only imagine the tremendous feelings of loss felt by the men and women of Dallas PD and DART.
There is a line in our Police Explorer Policy about fraternizing with the officers. Essentially, if we aren't at the station or approved event, we shouldn't be 'fraternizing' with the officers. It makes things seem very cut and dry in terms of the relationships we can have with the officers, and to an extent it does. The policy is meant to prevent inappropriate relationships, and it's a good policy to have. But what it doesn't cover or prevent is the professional relationships that come from spending 12 hours in a car with someone, or seeing them on a regular basis. It doesn't cover the fondness I have for the men and women of the 12s (The weekend shifts, which is usually when I do ride-alongs). I will have been an explorer for a year, as of tomorrow. I have spent a lot of time with these officers, and they occupied the majority of my thoughts last night. I would be devastated if anything happened to anyone in my department. And I am not even a real cop. I'm an explorer who spends probably a grand total of 55 hours per month with the department whether for ride alongs or explorer meetings or whatever (an average officer spends 212 hours, not counting overtime) . But that time is still spent, and I am still forging professional relationships with these men and women.
I'm particularly fond of the SWAT team, not just because I want to be a SWAT officer, eventually, but because even though I am just an explorer and the only time I really interact with the SWAT team is at regional training events when they need role players, I still feel welcomed and valued by the Officers on the SWAT team, which is something I can't always say for anything else I do. One officer never fails to call me by name, say 'what's up' and give me a fist bump. Another officer and I joke around, and most of the officers smile and wave, because even though they might not know my name, they know my face and they know I am always willing to learn and help.
My sister says I must have a radar implanted in my brain, because I can hear sirens a good half mile out and sense emergency service vehicles in close proximity to myself. One of the rules in my car is that if we see a cop, everyone has to wave. I always throw up a peace sign or wave when I see anyone in a cop car or a fire truck. I try to show respect and gratitude as much as possible, because I have seen first hand that this is often a hard path to walk. As I watched the news unfold last night, I felt angry and sad and sick, but the most overwhelming feeling I had was a desire to go out and be the best cop I could possibly be. I want to make those who have come before me proud. I want to make the officers that I work with proud. I want to honor the memories of the officers who laid down their lives protecting their communities. I got to a point last night where I just could not bear to watch and listen to the same things repeated over and over about what had happened in Dallas on nearly every channel, and because my normal Thursday TV show had been interrupted for news coverage, I decided to (finally) watch the Chicago Fire season finale (more thoughts on that later). I was touched by something one of the characters said following the death of a minor character. She said "Sacrifice is the hardest of all human actions, but anyone who puts on a uniform to help others knows that it's also the most important." Chicago Fire is generally a show I put in the fluffy guilty pleasure box, but sometimes there are moments where I am caught off guard by the poignancy of the show. Sacrifice is a hard action, but when made for the right reasons, it is one that often makes things better, in the long run.
Please, please be safe out there.
"If I get murdered in the city, don't go revenging in my name. One person dead from such is plenty, no need to go get locked away." - Murder In The City, The Avett Brothers
-D.
