A recent poll by the British Film Institute ranked it fifth in the documentary pantheon. "It is difficult to express the level of utter disgust and disappointment with Chief Moores politically pandering directive to remove Thin Blue Line flags and memorials for fallen officers from all public areas within our police stations. Transcript: Adams, a hitch-hiker, was offered a ride by Harris who was driving around in a stolen car. A former Fulbright and H.F. Guggenheim fellow, he has reported on a range of criminal justice subjects, including jail conditions, sheriffs, wrongful convictions, and art by incarcerated people. [2] Author and police officer Joseph Wambaugh helped to further popularize the phrase with his police novels throughout the 1970s and 1980s. The series was popular with viewers, though it suffered in critical reviews due to "inconsistent character development" and an "overly broad plot line". According to lawyers James Clapp and Elizabeth Thornburg, who have dug up the history behind popular phrases, the idea migrated to other professions, with other colors, from a thin white line of bishops to a thin blue line of public schoolboys in blazers.. I am strictly asking about why our country's flag being altered has widely been accepted, when I would think that goes against flag code. Movie Info. As Jacob built the company, a Blue Lives Matter movement was growing in the wake of news stories of multiple officers shot to death in Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Brooklyn, New York; and Dallas. The phrase gained another boost with Errol Morriss 1988 film The Thin Blue Line, in which a Dallas judge quotes a prosecutor describing what separates the public from anarchy. The title was ironic, if not sly, since the film depicted how law enforcement sent an innocent man to death row. ][11], It is unknown when the term was first used to refer to police. The name is now used for firefighters today. [14] The phrase is also documented in a 1965 pamphlet by the Massachusetts government, referring to its state police force, and in even earlier police reports of the NYPD. The American flag and blue line have often been blended with the image of a skull associated with The Punisher, an ex-Marine turned vigilante who first appeared in Marvel comics in 1974, combatting crime through extrajudicial murder and torture. and manufacturers. Five people, including Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, died in events related to the attack. Criminologists Don L. Kurtz and Alayna Colburn have analyzed the language police officers use in formal interviews, and argue that the thin blue line idea is an example of popular culture informing internal police culture, highlighting the assumed differences between officers and citizens and further progresses an us versus them mentality among officers.. As protests over policing continue to convulse cities throughout the U.S., one symbol keeps showing up: a black-and-white American flag with one blue stripe. Copyright 2023 The thin blue line flag represents the ideals of justice and freedom, bravery and solidarity. The phrase "the thin blue line" is older, perhaps first popularized in 1922 by New York City police Commissioner Richard Enright, who used the phrase to describe police as . Why do the police need their own tribal City-Data Forum > General Forums > Politics and Other Controversies: LAPD's Thin Blue Line flag ban spurs outrage amid recruitment struggles: 'Morale's in the gutter' . Parade returns after COVID-19 hiatus and despite rain, Report: Arrest rates in San Diego County hit seven-year low in 2021, Man, 23, killed in drive-by shooting in Encanto identified, 30-year-old driver, 6-year-old girl killed in SUV crash into tree in Oceanside; 4 youths injured, Police investigating shooting in Emerald Hills that injured 22-year-old woman, San Diego police arrest 13 suspects in jewelry theft ring, seek more victims, Thieves are targeting Californias refund cards, EBT and other debit cards. In 2014, a white college student named Andrew Jacob was watching protests of police killings of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and Tamir Rice. Calgary police officers have been directed to stop wearing 'thin blue line' patches on their uniform as of May 31, 2022. Shults earned his doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis from the University of Missouri, with a graduate degree in Public Services Administration and bachelors in Criminal Justice Administration from the University of Central Missouri. This direction came as a result of complaints from anti-police, criminal apologists, and activists who hold too much sway over our city leaders and, unfortunately, our Chief," the Board of directors for the Los Angeles Police Protective League wrote in a statement. Wood. (Jason Rantz). Mourners wore blue neckties and hair ribbons at the funeral service, but the fallen officers caskets were draped with American flags. The decision to ban the symbol came after nearly two years of controversy and debate over the issue. An attack on the thin blue line is perceived as an existential threat to working policemen and women. When I see that flag as a sticker on a car or flying in someones yard, I know that there is someone there that knows what Im going through. Residents in Montclair objected to a "thin blue line" flag that was mounted on a wall during a June 2 online forum with police. In the 1970s and 80s, the phrase was popularized in books and films, including the 1988 documentary, The Thin Blue Line, which tells the story of a mans trial and wrongful conviction in the killing of a police officer in Dallas. Founder of Blue Lives Matter NYC . The Pale Blue Eye is a 2022 American gothic mystery thriller film written and directed by Scott Cooper, adapted from the 2003 novel of the same name by Louis Bayard. Starring Rowan Atkinson, Mina Anwar . Legal Statement. Director Errol Morris and Miramax, the distributor of "The Thin Blue Line," frankly acknowledge that they hope the answer is yes. Bishop Cornelius Bowser, co-founder of the Community Assistance Support Team, which aims to prevent violence in the streets of San Diego, shared a similar opinion. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. For those viewing this canonical film . The film features an ensemble cast that includes Christian Bale, Harry Melling, Gillian Anderson, Lucy Boynton, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Toby Jones, Harry Lawtey, Simon McBurney, Timothy Spall, and Robert Duvall. Photo showing "Thin Blue Line" flag that was ordered to be removed from Marysville Middle School classroom in Washington A Vancouver city councillor who recently retired as a police officer is defending his choice to wear a thin blue line patch. Officers have worn versions of the flag on face masks while clashing with protesters in Baltimore and in Washington, D.C. Those who fly the flag have said it stands for solidarity and professional pride within a dangerous, difficult profession and a solemn tribute to fallen police officers. While documentary is often discussed in terms of its impact, Morris's pursuit for truth had a significant and tangible effect on a man's life. ", Thin Blue Line flag before being masked To him, it symbolizes respect and understanding for the families of officers killed in the line of dutyincluding suicides. Meanwhile, Detective Inspector Grim is in a good mood - he's got a real life bank raid to deal with. Adams wasn't dropped off at the hotel. She also urged officers to carefully consider the ways in which they "engage with those who espouse ideologies antithetical" to the department's core values and the constitution they have sworn to uphold. A Thin Blue Line. And at a time when people across the country have taken to the streets for weeks to protest police brutality and demand reform, its a symbol that some see as polarizing. The Thin Blue Line is the ninth book in a saga describing the fall of an interstellar empire and its consequences. I have been a . In the 1950s, Los Angeles police Chief Bill Parker picked up the term, mentioning it in speeches and adopting it as the title of a TV show he conceived to promote a polished image of the Los Angeles Police Department, which had been plagued by a history of corruption within the force. [4] Elton has appeared in the programme himself, in the Christmas special episode Yuletide Spirit. According to lawyers James Clapp and Elizabeth Thornburg, who have dug up the history behind popular phrases, the idea migrated to other professions . He worries that the concept of the thin blue line influences police culture and, in turn, affects the way communities are policed, especially Black communities that so often are criminalized, he said. The stars represent the citizenry who standfor justice and order. ", "I know this is hard. It was created and written by Ben Elton, and starred Rowan Atkinson. I also know that a symbol is not what holds us together or makes us a team," she said. Other first responders have adopted colors and emblems. Its not meant to be about hate or create a divide, said Schaeffer, whose cellphone case is decorated with the thin blue line flag. The "thin blue line" is a term that typically refers to the concept of the police as the line which keeps society from descending into violent chaos. The 1911 poem "The Thin Blue Line" by Nels Dickmann Anderson uses the phrase to refer to American soldiers (who wore blue) fighting against the British. [2] Judge Don Metcalfe, who presided over the trial of Randall Adams, states in the film that prosecutor "Doug Mulder's final argument was one I'd never heard before: about the 'thin blue line' of police that separate the public from anarchy." ", The LAPD chief ordered all flags with the symbol to be removed from public areas. In the first series the WANTED poster behind Fowlers desk in the briefing room is an E-FIT of Elton. In Montclair, New Jersey, a police leader begged residents on a Zoom call not to view the flag as a symbol of racism.. Select the option or tab named Internet Options (Internet Explorer), Options (Firefox), Preferences (Safari) or Settings (Chrome). Gov. Its use referring specifically to the police was popularized by Los Angeles Police Chief Bill Parker during the 1950s; author and police officer Joseph Wambaugh in the 1970s, by which time "thin blue line" was used across the United States;[2] and Errol Morris's documentary The Thin Blue Line(1988). Local skirmishes and letters to the editor in various states have questioned whether the thin blue line flag is a violation of the U.S. A Maryland police department has been banned from displaying a 'thin blue line' flag after it as dubbed 'divisive' of a community, some of which argues it was 'dismissive of the Black Lives Matter . When Grim says they're looking for married officers, Fowler decides to propose to Patricia. The reason that this life was comparatively short was partly because the public simply wouldn't . [3][10], An early known use of the phrase "thin blue line" is from a 1911 poem by Nels Dickmann Anderson, titled "The Thin Blue Line". Fowler reluctantly agrees to let his son Bill stay with him and Patricia for a few days. If you have the option to open tabs from the previous . February is the second in the series. Over the years, officers around the country occasionally placed stickers of a blue line surrounded by black on their cars. 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