Mayor Bill de Blasio Progress Report

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Chris Hutchison, Staff Writer

Chris Hutchison, Staff Writer

In July of 2014, police officers in Staten Island attempted to arrest an African American man (Eric Garner) for illegally selling cigarettes. Eric Garner resisted arrest, to a degree, and the police officers apprehended him. During the confrontation one officer went against the NYPD code of conduct and put Eric Garner in a chokehold. Mr. Garner, who had asthma, died from the lack of oxygen.

On December 3 a grand jury in Staten Island failed to indict the officer on any charges. This came just days after a grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri failed to indict a police officer in the killing of Michael Brown. Most people expected there to be protests, but few expected the Mayor of New York City, Bill De Blasio, to condone, or even incite, an atmosphere of disrespect for the NYPD.

Mayor de Blasio has made many comments that threw the NYPD under the bus, and blamed them for the growing tension in the city. Many in the NYPD have, in a form of protest, turned their back (literally) on the mayor.

And then, on the 20th of December, two NYPD officers (Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos) were assassinated by a lone gunman which many have connected to the anti-police rhetoric coming from the Eric Garner protesters. The concern stems from the fact that the protesters chanted “What do we want…Dead cops…When do we want it…Now”.

During the funeral for Officer Ramos, Mayor de Blasio attempted to give a consoling speech. However, during the speech thousands of NYPD officers simultaneously turned their backs on the Mayor. The complete lack of trust that the NYPD as for the Mayor is an issue that must be addressed.

Soon after the incident, NYC’s top police union and the mayor met for 2 hours to try and ease the situation. The meeting resulted in no positive compromise.

Many in the media have called the police’s actions petty and childish. But I believe their actions are just the opposite. Members of the NYPD are in an extremely dangerous situation, and they certainly do not have the moral support of the mayor. I would ask those who criticize the police why it’s alright for thousands of protesters to block traffic and bring major areas of NYC to a standstill, but it’s not alright for the NYPD to protest against a mayor that clearly does not support them, or their actions.