Los Angeles police officers are pushing back against the widespread anti-police sentiment that the progressive left has been fomenting since the death of George Floyd. Law enforcement agencies across the country have been arguing against the initiative to defund local police departments in major cities. But LA-based police officers have taken the resistance to the left’s campaign a step further.

On Saturday, about 100 members of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) held a demonstration in front of the city hall, calling on residents and leaders to “defend the police.” Commander Ruby Flores posted a tweet thanking participants and stated that Americans should focus on holding corrupt officers accountable while lifting those who are doing their jobs.

Thank you to those who came out to support #LAPD and law enforcement. It is a time in our history that we need this more than ever. We need to always identify and remove bad cops while SIMULTANEOUSLY lifting up and thanking the good cops. It’s not a one or the other. It’s BOTH. pic.twitter.com/ukESTg314s

— Commander Ruby Flores (@LAPDRuby) July 11, 2020

The Los Angeles Times published a piece detailing the city council’s decision to cut the LAPD budget by $150 million. Members of the city legislature will be funneled into services for black, Hispanic, and disenfranchised communities.

From The Los Angeles Times:

“Officers say they are demoralized by the cuts, which will deliver a huge hit to overtime pay and hiring in the 10,000-member department, when they have worked hard to build ties with community members and are willing to risk their lives to keep people safe.”

Rusty Redican, an LAPD officer, told The Los Angeles Times that he was concerned that the defunding measures would negatively impact predominantly minority communities. “What I’m concerned about is that the neighborhoods that will pay the worst price are the most economically depressed neighborhoods,” he said. “Ninety-five percent of the people in South L.A. are great people who just want to live their lives and not be preyed on by gang members and drug dealers.”

Morale in the LAPD has been at record lows since Mayor Eric Garcetti indicated that he supported progressive proposals to defund police departments. Over the weekend of July 4^th, hundreds of police officers called out sick. The department has launched an investigation to determine whether or not some of the absences were a “blue flu” type of protest, which is illegal.

The rally was organized by members of the community and attracted officers and their families who were disheartened by the effort to vilify members of law enforcement. Individuals working in the department suggested the rally as an alternative to “blue flu” protests.

But the rally was not without its detractors. A small group of anti-police counterprotesters railed against the rally because of course they did. “You don’t get to sit here and tell us our lives don’t matter because your family is police, or the police will protect you because of your complexion,” Tara Perry, a member of Black Pact told The Los Angeles Times.

Ariana Waters, a researcher working at a cancer center, argued that the LAPD is “grossly overfunded,” and that the money being cut from its budget should go towards addressed issues like mental illness and homelessness. “Because they get so much money and power, they abuse it,” she said. “The more cops we have, the more crime we have. All you have is hammers, so everyone is a nail.”

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