Ted Rall Quotes

Our kids' lives depend upon keeping them safe. That has to be a fundamental duty and responsibility for me as mayor. That means we have to continue hard but necessary work of bridging the divide between police and communities they serve.

I certainly have written a lot about police in my life, and it's not only something that I know about, but always something that interests me.

Society questions the police and their methods, and the police say, Do you want the criminals off the street or not?

There is insufficient support for the police and safety and law enforcement, in general, in the city council.

The United States isn't a dictatorship ruling with a brutal army and an iron fist, so our police departments must understand that they are there to serve and protect us - all of us. And when they do commit crimes, they must be arrested and prosecuted like anyone else, bottom line.

What we need in our countries is a good police force with a civilian mentality and some cheap light arms, not an army that needs to maintain its power with sophisticated weapons

There is a necessity for police offers to control themselves as well as the people in the streets... Our police are there to help people, not to hurt people.

We are safer when communities respect the police and the police respect the communities.

We can't pick out certain incidentals that don't go our way and act like the cops are all bad... Do you know how bad some of these neighborhoods would be if it wasn't for the cops?

There's a larger conversation we need to have about the role of police officers, their relationship to the people as enemy or executioner, when they're not supposed to be either.

The police should be focused on policing criminal activity, and that's sort of the beginning, the middle and the end of it for me.

While we must condemn any misuse of their authority, let's not forget that, by far, police are fulfilling their duty to protect and serve.

No one wants dangerous criminals in our communities.

I don't support defunding the police.

Law enforcement must be guardians in our communities, not warriors against our own people.

We are demanding police transparency and accountability so we can build trust and work together to make our communities safer.

People see police officers and think they're such bad people. We have some who can be some bad people. But we have some great ones out there, that are here to protect us.

Not every officer is a bad police. I work with police officers. I know first responders.

I do not support the idea of defunding police departments. I believe that it does nothing to solve the root problems we must address and it makes our communities less safe.

I've, in fact, very specifically said I don't support defunding the police.

Cops should not be separate from the black community or any community. Their salaries are paid for by the communities they police. They should be working for the communities they police. But as we saw in Ferguson, Missouri, they are not always doing that.

We have to restore trust between communities and the police.

The police are not entrusted with a mission which differentiates them from those they serve. Being unconcerned with ultimate purposes, they are inseparable from the persons and interests of their masters, and shine with their reflected glory.

Police ought to protect communities as well as individuals.... Just as physicians now recognize the importance of fostering health rather than simply treating illness, so the police - and the rest of us - ought to recognize the importance of maintaining, intact, communities without broken windows.

We need better police training.