National Police Week remembers fallen officers, should it include thanking officers for service?

It’s been a turbulent year for police officers around the country.

This is national police week, honoring those killed in the line of duty. But do we show enough appreciation to the officers still with us?

The president of the El Paso Municipal Police Officers Association told ABC-7 why he thinks the tense situation nationally hasn’t happened here.

“I want to say the only time I’ve seen it this bad (nationally) was during the Rodney King issues,” said Ron Martin, president of the El Paso Municipal Police Officers Association. “One very lucky thing in El Paso is we don’t have the ethnical issues that other cities have.”

Martin said 80 to 90 percent of El Paso’s police officers are hispanic, which is truly representative of the city.

“El Paso is just one community and we behave as such,” Martin said, “and our department represents our community very well.”

ABC-7 asked El Pasoans if we should appreciate our police officers more.

“Of course we need to,” El Pasoan Evelyn Bustos said, “because they risk their lives every day.”

Added Christian Alcantar: “It’s not every cop is like that, like racist or whatever. I don’t think every cop is the same, so I think we should appreciate them a little more.”

“It would really surprise an officer (if people thanked them),” Martin said. “I think it would help them to basically say, ‘Look, you’re not alone. Not everybody out here hates you. There are people who like the police department. There are people who like what you do and respect what you do.”

Martin told ABC-7 that El Paso is at a 15-year staffing low, with just 1,046 officers currently on the force. He said that leaves them bouncing from call to call to call.

All the more reason, Martin feels, for El Pasoans to thank officers for their service during National Police Week.