As human beings, we must all admit to having biases...
/As human beings, we must all admit to having biases in our heart at some point in our lives. As police officers, we are not exempt from these flaws. Yet in order to truly become an effective police officer, one must do the following: As soon as you don your uniform, you must leave your personal worldview at your locker so it won’t stymie you in being the best cop you can be for the sake of all.
I am a born again Christian, but when I put my uniform on and someone of the Muslim or Jewish faith, or even one who has no faith at all, approaches me for help, I go out of my way to help them. I am straight, but if find out that a citizen I serve was victimized because they are gay or transgender, the suspect must know that I am coming for them, and I am bringing legal hell with me. I am an American Citizen, but if an undocumented person comes to me as a victim of domestic violence, or any crime, rest assured that I will be as diligent in seeking justice for them as I would a legal citizen.
For the negative exception of law enforcement struggling with this, please know that you are standing in the way of the honorable rule that is trying to gain the trust of communities around this nation. You can change as well by applying this practice each day you don your uniform.
Do this until a heart of service for all becomes second nature to you. In doing so, you become a better person on and off duty. You begin to discover the beauty in people who may be different from you when you see how much they appreciate receiving love, concern, and dedication from a place they have been indoctrinated not to expect it.
You must embrace the challenge of reaching out to communities that mistrust us, as I and thousands of other officers have. If we bravely accept the challenge of staring death in the face every day, I know we can accept the challenge of stepping across those lines that keep us from establishing better relationships with the communities we serve.
