‘Recognize the Pain’ of Police After Dallas Shooting: Mayor to Protesters
(DNAINFO) Ben Fractenberg and Aidan Gardiner | July 9, 2016 — “Protesters owe it to the police to be respectful,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said.
Mayor Bill de Blasio urged those hoping to protest police violence this weekend to “recognize the pain” NYPD officers are feeling after the murder of five police officers in Dallas Thursday night.
“I really want to urge protesters to recognize the pain that our police are going through right now,” the mayor said during a press conference with NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton during a Friday afternoon press conference.
“Protesters owe it to the police to be respectful,” de Blasio said. “Show some decency and respect for people who are going through so much.”
The NYPD will boost the numbers of officers it deploys to protests planned for Friday and over the weekend
City officials urged understanding after the officers were killed and seven others were wounded in a sniper attack at a Dallas demonstration against violence by police.
“Forty-five years in the business and I’ve never seen anything like it,” said a visibly solemn Bratton.
Threats surged against the NYPD after a Minnesota woman broadcast the aftermath of a traffic stop that left her boyfriend, Philando Castile, dead and sparked national outrage, officials said.
Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson appeared at a press conference later Friday afternoon alongside de Blasio and Bratton to emphasize building bridges between law enforcement officers and members of the community — including protesters.
“Just like last night’s killer does not represent all those who seek to bring about change, any police officer who engages in excessive force does not represent all those in law enforcement — far from it,” he said.