Do I want a cookie because my husband is a police officer?
No.
This isn’t about me. It is about our entire law enforcement community. Every child of a police officer, every mother, every father, every spouse, every sister or brother, and the entire brotherhood of cops around America.
This is about the war on cops. To some that don’t know law enforcement personally or can’t see past the false narrative driven by the media, it may seem like this war doesn’t exist. But it absolutely does and this war isn’t exactly new either. It is just getting worse.
What It is Like Being a Law Enforcement Family During the War on Cops
With close to 800,000 police officers in this nation, I am going to go out on a limb here and say that nearly every single one of those officers and their families are struggling in some way right now. I have spoken to thousands of families over the last few months and they all say: they have never seen the negativity and hatred towards law enforcement so bad before. What’s worse is this hatred is now turning to threats and direct violence not just towards police officers but also their families.
I am talking about families that are pretty experienced in this lifestyle, are not normally consumed by fear, and are used to the ups and downs of this job.
We are all fully aware of what this job entails. We know this line of work is dangerous and contains a level of risk.
However, just because police officers work in what is considered a dangerous job, does not mean they expect to never come home to their families. It does NOT mean they are now okay with being ambushed, targeted, or worse have their families targeted, too.
Furthermore, when police officers are home and their uniform comes off, this violence and hatred does not stop. It continues.
No one, I repeat, NO ONE should ever have to experience that kind of evil because of their career choice.
As law enforcement families, we are being labeled.
We are being ridiculed.
We are being called racist.
Our children are being bullied because of the profession of their parent.
We are losing friends and even family.
Not because of something we said or did to someone else. We are losing friends and family because we say we support law enforcement. Most of these law enforcement families are NOT saying they do not support other people or posting hateful things. They simply do not like us because we share a thin blue image or have a loved one in law enforcement.
People are assuming things about us and our families just because we support law enforcement.
New Flash: You can disagree with someone without unfriending them, calling them names, being argumentative or assuming just because they support one thing that they automatically do not support something else.
These are the same people that yell in the streets to ‘defund the police’ but are the first to call 911 when they need help. Another news flash: you can’t have it both ways.
America, WE ARE TIRED.
Every law enforcement family in this nation is mentally exhausted and we are begging you TO DO BETTER. BE BETTER.
Because honestly, you are driving every good law enforcement officer away from a job they once loved. And can you blame them?
If you are a Law Enforcement Family Reading This Then Remember:
You are absolutely not alone.
There are thousands of other police families feeling what you’re feeling and experiencing what you are experiencing, too.
And for every person out there disrespecting law enforcement, there are even more supporters that have their backs. Some show their support, while some are too afraid.
When you get support from friends, family, neighbors, even complete strangers tell them how much it means to you. Thank them. Tell them to never stop saying it and that they should say it to every police officer and law enforcement family they see.
That support is what we cling to. The good and light they bring to our day gives us hope.
I can’t say I’ll know when this will war on cops will end, because I don’t know. But I do know that someday, somehow it will.
The thin blue line is getting stronger and thicker every day because of the strength of our community.
All we can continue to do is pray, have faith in the Lord, and continue to spread good and love in the world to drive out the evil that exists.
If you need more encouragement, check out my journal for police wives and girlfriends on Amazon, The Peacemaker’s Wife. It provides you with journal prompts and quotes for navigating police wife life more positively.
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