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English 1010
Prof. Erin Walton
Consumers Memoir
Tibetan charm for good luck. It was hijacked by Adolf Hitler and the Nazi party and is
now universally represents hatred and anti-Semitism. The Blue Lives Matter
response to a changing political landscape that has demonized our police service
personnel. It has created a culture of fear that has imposed an us versus them
mentality. It is for this reason that, as a law enforcement officer, I do not support
this movement.
movement that started after Michael Brown was shot by police in Ferguson,
African American man that was murdered by a white police officer, the movement
was created. Evidence later exonerated the officer that shot Mr. Brown and showed
that the officer was, in fact, defending himself from a much larger attacker in Mr.
Brown. In response to the anti-law enforcement rhetoric that shifted public opinion
against police, Blue Lives Matter was created. Rallies were held with vitriolic counter
protestors that sometimes ended in violent clashes between factions. The Black
Lives Matter movement was gaining ground, putting Blue Lives Matter on their
heels. After several other controversial shootings of unarmed black males, Blue
The Thin Blue Line was created as a symbol to help the marketing campaign
for the pro-law enforcement Blue Lives Matter Campaign. Shirts, stickers, flags and
other merchandise were created to help fund the ailing movement. The most
common depiction of the symbol is a solid black background with a blue line
bisecting the background into two boxes. The idea is that one box represents the
public while the other represents criminals. The blue line are the police officers that
versus them mentality. For example, there is no color variation between the public
and the criminals we are to protect them from. This was the intent, as we were
being attacked by both groups. One was attacking us with violence while the other
was attacking us with speech. Fueled by the media, both movements created
multiple social media accounts on every platform. As the dialogue became more
Many people, whether they are pro or anti law enforcement, describe the
current rifts as a war. This mentality is dangerous and irresponsible. We are public
servants. As such, it is our job to protect the citizenry from harm, not fan the flames.
Over the past few years I have encountered a more aggressive, more entitled group
of people than the previous years I have worked in this field. I have been frustrated
as I have been the target of their misplaced anger. I have had prisoners spit in my
face, punch and kick me, and threaten my life. In the face of all the contempt, I
have remained professional and treated people with dignity, though it hasnt always
been easy. But what is the most infuriating, isnt the response from the public, it is
something I take pride in, nor is it our intent to harm them, but an inadvertent
initiated. However, after a significant incident occurs and during our debriefing
period, the antics of some of the people I work with are downright deplorable. They
will laugh and joke about lacerations that opened on that douchebags head,
congratulate each other on how hard they smashed the person, and mock the
persons antics that lead up to the use of force. The people that we are sworn to
that are disturbing because it helps mitigate and hide their true emotions. In a
show that they are affected by traumatic situations. During one such incident, a
man was brought in to jail in the middle of winter. This man had no shirt or shoes
on, but sweat was beading off his forehead. He was speaking incoherently and
moving erratically. When it came time for him to be searched in to the jail he tried
fighting. He was small, which surprised me with how hard he was fighting. We
decided to search him inside a padded cell for the safety of everyone involved. We
brought him over to the cell and he continued to fight with us until he just stopped
moving. We have medical staff on site, so we brought the nurses over to check on
him. They said we needed to start life saving measures immediately. I started doing
You are supposed to push on their chest between 100-120 times per minute,
stopping every 30 to give 2 rescue breaths. I did compressions for 45 minutes until
the ambulance arrived. People offered to relieve me so I could get a break, but I
insisted on staying in. You get surprised by the amount of force you must use to get
effective chest compressions. I remember being grossed out feeling his ribs
separate from his sternum. 45 minutes is a very long time. I felt like I needed to
stay involved, because I wanted to say definitively that we did everything we could
to save his life. He ended up passing away, which was extremely stressful. After all,
I was then being investigated for homicide because he didnt survive. That is
After the scene had been cleared and I had given my statement to the
investigators, peer support and mental health professionals were made available for
those that were involved. Every time someone asked me if I needed anything, I
would respond Im good. It didnt matter what it was they were asking. I just said,
Im good. We all have our own coping mechanisms. In that moment, mine was to
try and suppress what was going on in my head. Others were making jokes. It was
obvious in this instance that they were also mitigating their emotions. I can
reconcile when people do that, because I have been there before. But the idea that
have made bad choices, I dont think they are bad people. I take that same
perspective and put it on the people that I deal with on a day to day basis. The Thin
Blue Line is a response to the growing chasm between the protectors of our
neighborhoods, and the people they are assigned to protect. But its a response that