Some of Dallas' citizens and most powerful leaders are taking a very visible stand in support of police officers.
The campaign is called “Operation Blue Shield,” and Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and Dallas Police Chief David Brown talked with NBC 5 about the effort that kicks off President's Day.
“We're trying to engage the community and say, ‘I'm all in for our police officers,’ and if you're not, let's talk about why you're not,” Mayor Mike Rawlings said.
Both men pointed to protests in Dallas and around the country after two high-profile grand jury decisions that declined to indict officers for deadly encounters with unarmed black men.
“You've got to really listen to folks talk about the historical perspective, but at the same time, you've got to fast-forward to today and get past describing the problem and start talking about the solution,” Police Chief David Brown said.
Starting Monday, the campaign will hand out blue and gold ribbons to tie on trees, hat clips and lapel ribbons, not only to honor police officers, but to unite Dallas.
For more information and to make a donation, visit www.operationblueshield.com. A dollar gets you hat clips and stickers, and the money raised will fund public safety initiatives.
