Clinton must start showing support for blue lives

Seventeen years ago this October, my father, Steven Levy, a corporal in the Washington Township Police Department in New Jersey, was shot and killed by a man who illegally possessed a firearm. Since his death, I’ve forced myself to follow in his footsteps; pursuing a career of public service, which is the primary reason I’m in law school at Rutgers in Camden, New Jersey.

Recently, POLITICO reported that Donald Trump has organized his endorsement interview with the national Fraternal Order of Police (FOP)— one of the largest union of law enforcement officers in the country.

{mosads}I was deeply saddened to read that, Donald Trump, a horrifically unqualified demagogue could be considered by such an respected organization to be the best candidate to represent law enforcement officers. I was more upset, however, to see that Secretary Hillary Clinton, my candidate of choice, was not planning to seek the FOP endorsement.

I’ve been involved in Democratic politics in New Jersey and Washington, DC., for years. I was inspired to fight for gun control and civil rights because of the work that my father did.

Law enforcement officers are members of one of the most demanding and thankless professions out there; they should be constantly commended for their actions.

For example, in Dallas, Black Lives Matters protesters were rallying against police brutality. During their protests shots rang out wildly and police units on the scene ran towards the gunfire to neutralize the threat and protect those very same protestors.

Let’s be clear. Black lives do matter. There remains to this day a level of inequality that shows that American society sometimes does value black lives less than white ones. The gendered wage gap exists, but is even more pronounced for women of color who, on average, make fractions of the salaries of their white male coworkers. We have a long way to go to achieve racial equality in the United States.

But support for black lives does not, and cannot, stand in opposition to blue lives and their families. You can be just as outraged as I am every time there is an unjustified police shooting of an unarmed African American and still support the police and mourn their losses.

Without a doubt, Clinton is the best candidate to lead our very great nation in 2017. Her leadership in foreign policy is unparalleled and her knowledge about domestic policy and national security cannot be matched.

She has surrounded herself with the brightest minds and will fight for civil rights of all kind.

Clinton’s gun control policies are sure to reduce gun violence in America’s most dangerous cities. Her pro-labor initiatives will continue to make sure that collective bargaining is just as secure for factory workers as it is for patrolmen and women.

Before the New Jersey primary this last June, I shared my brief story and wrote a letter announcing just one of the many reasons why Clinton has my support. I’m with her now and I have been since she announced her candidacy in 2015.

I have her back and will proudly vote for her in November, but now I am unfortunately forced to ask Clinton if she has the backs of law enforcement officers across the nation.

Levy is a first-year student at the Rutgers University School of Law in Camden, New Jersey. 

The views expressed by contributors are their own and not the views of The Hill.