Colorado congressman Ken Buck recently criticized the thousands of demonstrators protesting police brutality in a guest column for the Colorado Springs Gazette on Monday.
He opened his column asking “Have we forgotten 9/11?” and giving kudos to police for all their heroic acts, mentioning the 23 New York City police officers and 37 Port Authority officers who died during the terrorist attacks on that ill-fated day.
“It’s easy for activists, athletes and members of Congress to question the motives of police officers,” the newly elected official wrote. “The media provides them with a broad platform to perpetuate their hateful tone, harsh criticisms, and mistruths. But when was the last time you heard someone call 911 to report an intruder in their home and ask for a congressman to come help them? Heck, Congress doesn’t have the courage to tackle tough issues, much less a fleeing felon.”
The congressman seemed to forget that most of the controversial cases such as Eric Garner’s do not involve “fleeing felons,” but are more about the police perception of Black males as likely felons.
“The United States is fortunate to have one of the most equitable justice systems in the world, even if it is not perfect,” he wrote. “Those casting stones at police officers show an incredible lack of foresight about the problems they are causing by stoking racial divisions. We should appreciate the sacrifices police officers make to keep America safe and peaceful, not add fuel to the fire that is dividing our country.”
Before closing, Buck made sure to paint the police force as the victims in these situations where innocent men die.
“There are more than 900,000 sworn law enforcement officers now serving in the United States,” the Weld County District Attorney states. “More than 100 officers died in 2014 while on duty. They suffer nearly 60,000 assaults annually and nearly 16,000 injuries. To foist generalizations and wild accusations of racial bias on them is hypocritical, disrespectful, and dangerous. Doing so won’t make minority communities safer—it will simply harm the morale of our law enforcement officers and endanger them.”
