The sacred symbol of life and prosperity used by several indigenous tribes on the continent has been raped of its beauty by Nazi appropriation of the swastika. The American flag has been burned and trampled. The symbol has been banned by some homeowner associations, has been removed from patrol vehicles, and forbidden as a part of the uniform, including COVID-19 masks. This is no more accurate than believing that the medical symbol of the caduceus represents malpractice. The blue line and blue line flag have perversely been labeled offensive by those who oppose the mission of law enforcement, and who have been deceived by the narrative of violence and racism as an epidemic among the hundreds of thousands of police officers that serve our communities and are accountable to them. For the civilian, it says they are willing to stand with those who join in everyone’s responsibility to maintain peace and those whose vocation is dedicated to maintaining peace. For a police officer, it says they are a part of something bigger than themselves. When it appears it says of the bearer that they support the concept of justice and reason, as well as the strength of the law as enforced by those entrusted to do so. It is a symbol to the citizenry that the thin blue line will not be broken. It is not a flag pronouncing superiority of class or privilege. It is not part of a battle cry by police officers of aggression toward the public or those who oppose law and order. The rich and deep symbolism of the thin blue line, and the flag on which it appears, is not a flag of defiance. The representation of the blue wall of silence is not a revered value to police officers, but a vestige of the past that leaders must still work to overcome. That wall, which has indeed existed in some times and places, refers to the shielding of police officers by their colleagues from responsibility for misconduct. The thin blue line is sometimes mistaken for what some have called the blue wall of silence. The background to the flag is stark, representing the men and women who have died defending that line, all embracing the American flag and the unity it symbolizes. The blue line represents the men and women of law enforcement who stand in the gap between the lawless and the innocent. A flag created around that theme is black and white with a blue line as the center horizontal stripe. The imagery of American policing has come to be represented by the thin blue line. Symbols are important to cultures and classes. Their tenacity and willingness to sacrifice became known as the thin red line. Blue has since come to represent loyalty and fidelity.Īnother British phrase is associated with colors that have meaning comes from the red-coated regiment of Scottish soldiers bravely trying to hold ground from the enemy during the Crimean war. I am proud to serve this great City of Mesa and thankful for our engaged and supportive community members.The story dates from the middle ages that a particular blue clothing dye from the town of Coventry, England was of such high quality that it remained true blue and did not fade. We have made transparency a priority by releasing Critical Incident Briefing videos within 45 days of an officer-involved shooting and providing easy online access to use of force and crime statistics. Through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Nextdoor, we are sharing alerts, videos and stories and providing more platforms for our community to engage with us. We have increased our social media footprint. Our newly created Community Engagement Academy has been highly successful as community members get to experience the true meaning of police work and be given a platform to ask questions and engage with officers who patrol their neighborhoods. We hope once COVID restrictions are lifted we will continue to see attendance grow at our quarterly Community forums. With a strategic plan in place, we are implementing state of the art technology throughout the department, including a "real-time crime center,” and we are continuing to build relationships within our community through thoughtful forums, training and outreach. Major crime numbers are down, calls for service are up, and over the next 3 years we will add more than 300 sworn and professional staff members to the department. Mesa is now recognized as one of the safest big cities in the country and Mesa residents have so much to be proud about.
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