Is America safe for those who try to keep it that way?
Heartbreak. Disgust. Anger.
We experience the same feelings over and over. Another one of us down, another sister, another family member in blue who’s had their blood spilled on the streets of America.
We are villainized by the media for financial gain, villainized by opportunist politicians for votes, and villainized by ignorant celebrities and artists for more likes on their social media. The result is the creation of a cold, harsh, extremely violent, and deadly environment in America, where a cop’s life does not matter.
I find it quite amusing; these media companies, politicians, and celebrities will make pretty speeches, post emotional tweets, and speak up when it comes to factually and statistically false ideologies like gun control and blacks being targeted by cops.
However, when it comes to true evil, true disgusting facts about America, like how 187 people have been killed in Chicago this year, or how Baltimore city has had 21 homicides in the past 30 days, everyone is silent.
The people you watch on TV, the people that you vote for, the people that you dance and sing-along to, are silent about black on black crime in the inner cities. They are silent about women getting battered and raped. They are silent about innocent people getting robbed. They are silent about drugs flowing into our neighborhoods. They are silent about the very things that we, cops, face everyday.
While they stay silent, we put on our gear to go out into the cold harsh environment that they have created, and we try to make it a little bit safer for our families, for your family.
Knowing that possible death is around the corner on every call, on every stop, and every encounter, we still continue forward, borrowing from the happiness of tomorrow, a tomorrow where your family and our family can be a little bit safer, to pay the price that we may have to pay today. This year, 60 of us had to pay that price. When will America be a safe place for those who try to keep it that way?
Jay Stalien grew up in the “hood” in Brooklyn, NY. He watched out-of-control black-on-black crime from childhood. As an adult he wondered who would help bring the violence to an end, so he stepped up to become a police officer. He began his career with the Baltimore Police Department before a lateral move to West Palm Beach, Florida, where he works as a police officer.