There was a time in our communities when police officers were looked up to as heroes and champions of justice. Many of us can remember the outdoor fruit stands where an officer would pluck an apple from the rack and hand it to a child. Police officers were a beacon of light, and people felt secure as the boys in blue walked their beat.
People of all colors trusted the police because they took an oath to protect and serve all people; however, somewhere there has been a breakdown between the police and the communities they swore to protect.
The word restoration simply means the process of bringing back or restoring someone or something to its original state. I would love to see this breakdown between the police and the community restored with communication and trust once again.
It saddens me to hear of a police officer, in 2014, shooting a young black man sixteen times without provocation or cause. The thing that saddens me most is no one wins in situations such as these. Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke was recently convicted of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Laquan McDonald. He was also convicted of 16 counts of aggravated battery, one count for each bullet he used against McDonald.
McDonald’s family has lost a loved one; A tragedy that should have ended with only an arrest. Van Dyke’s children and wife didn’t pull the trigger, but now they must endure the possibility of their father, and her husband, facing a sentence of four to twenty years; and up to thirty years for aggravated battery.
No one glories in this situation because both sides lose. So, here’s my original question, Is there restoration?
The Traveler Weekly 