The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s senior researcher Randy Petersen, who spent twenty-one years in law enforcement, released the following statement in support of National Police Week:
“As we enter Police Week 2021 we remember the valiant service that the men and women of law enforcement provide their communities, sometimes at the expense of their own lives. While we remember the fallen, we should also reflect on the living and what their service still means to us.
“The national divide on the role of our police officers has never been greater. Anti-police rhetoric has permeated the ranks of our highest government officials. How far we have fallen from 1962 when President Kennedy and a joint resolution in Congress established May 15 as the National Peace Officers Memorial Day and eventually Police Week. It seems improbable that we could muster such bipartisan support for our police officers today.
“We should use this week to honor the heroes of yesterday and celebrate the heroes of today. America needs to move away from the hateful speech of those who pursue anarchy and instead support law enforcement with the promise of better training opportunities and develop communities as committed to their police as the police are to their communities.”