I think many people realize how important police/community relations are for most cities and their police departments. For one thing it helps with the overall crime fighting that occurs every day in our cities. It makes it easier because the more people can trust the police, the more they want to cooperate on crime issues. I do remember in my early patrol days how people would give you information about what was going on in the neighborhood. My partner and I had a particularly good relationship with people in our patrol areas. We would give them telephone numbers to contact us if they had issues in the neighborhood. One example was we had a shooting we were working on trying to see who was responsible. A call was received stating Officer Thompson the shooters live at a certain address and tomorrow certain people will take revenge. That tip helped us make arrests and stop another shooting for revenge.
This past weekend I attended two events sponsored by the Milwaukee Police Department and barbers, yes, the folks that cut hair, that both occurred at the Sherman Park Boys and Girls Club, at 3000 N Sherman Blvd. On Saturday there was a basketball game held, billed as a battle between MPD officers and the barbers. The community was invited to the event to help them get to know officers by showing they are part of the community. A light crowd did attend the event and appeared to have a fun time. I interviewed a father who brought his young two kids to the event. He stated he was a correctional officer and thought his kids had a positive attitude towards the police. The barbers were the better team on this day and really did in the officers 101 to 86. It was fun for very one involved and the final score really did not mean that much. I was advised the officers and barbers work together on various projects during the year.
On Sunday I attended a second event again put on by District 7, MPD officers, and the barbers. This event had a little better turn out with large crowds at the end. This was a Christmas toy give away to the families. Upon arrival I was advised the barbers were upstairs cooking breakfast for the kids and their families. They were preparing eggs, toast, bacon, sausage, shrimp and grits, French toast, punch, juice among other items. The kids were extremely excited and interacting with the officers around the gym. Initially there was not a big crowd but someone with the barbers got on social media inviting more people to come. After a while people started to pour in. It started to get really crowded. The crowd was excited, and the kids’ eyes lit up looking at all the toys that were to be given out.
I had to leave before breakfast started and the toys were given out. I asked one of the officers why this was important. He said, “I am from these neighborhoods, and I know what it is like to grow up around here. I want these kids to trust the police and not be afraid of us”. This is just an example of the excellent work MPD officers are doing every day in our neighborhoods under the direction of Chief Jeffrey Norman.
Leave a Reply