From Andrew, what I consider a fellow GREEN SHIRT!
Andrew Dawson wrote:
As I sit here writing this, it is with mixed emotions. On the one hand, I am relieved to finally be done with what can only be explained as a roller coaster ride. For the past 2 months, I have come to work every night not knowing if I would have a job the next day. Despite this, myself and the Officers I work with have done our best to keep our heads high while working to ensure that the innocent are kept safe and that we all come home safely at the end of the night. We do this because that’s the job. We do this because if we don’t look out for each other out there, no one else will. It has been an emotional drain given the circumstances, but we have done it. For this reason, I am relieved to finally have some closure. On the other hand, I am broken inside. I am broken because over the past 3 years I have experienced things that the average person will likely never experience. I have entered buildings after hearing shots fired inside, all the while knowing that I’m going to come out ok because myself and the Officers at my side are going to do what has to be done to make sure we all go home to our families. I know without asking that as I enter a dark room looking for the bad-guy, my partner’s gun is trained on the dark hallway ahead of us, ever vigilant of the unseen danger. This is a trust and a bond that is difficult to explain to those who haven’t experienced it.... See More
Another emotion that I am feeling is disgust. I am disgusted at the way Officers and the futures of their families have been traded and bartered like cheap baseball cards by our Mayor. I am disgusted by the fact that I found out I was being laid off through the media. I am disgusted by the fact that my Chief found out that he was “resigning” through the media. I am disgusted by the spinelessness of a Mayor elected to notify us this way rather than by facing us and delivering the news personally. I am disgusted by the way our Mayor has forced us to choose between altering the lives of the senior Officers forever, or ending the careers of 158 younger Officers.
As for the “option” given by the Mayor to “avoid layoffs,” for me it was no option. For those of you who are reading this and do not know the details of his proposal, here it is. The Mayor attempted to sell this to the media as a 5% pay cut with some concessions. However, those concessions were more furlough days, no salary step increases, the loss of the few benefits we have left, and loss of the right to negotiate for 2 years. All and all, when one takes in to account the furlough days that we have already taken this fiscal year, the total pay cut falls between 15-20% depending on how long the Officer has been employed. On top of this, the Mayor refused to guarantee that if we took this deal, he would not turn around and lay us off anyway. I am in the bottom 155 Officers and last night I voted to lay myself off. I did this because I could not in good conscience vote for a 20% decrease in the salaries of many Officers with large families who I know could not afford it. Also, our pension system is based on our average salaries towards the end of our careers. This means that if we were to have taken this cut, the Officers who are near retirement would take a substantial hit in the pension that they require to survive after they retire. I will move on and I will do what I have to do to provide for my wife and I. I will be ok. I have no doubt that there will be many departments who will recognize what we have to offer. For those who voted otherwise please do not get me wrong, I am by no means saying that everyone should have voted this way. I voted my heart and I have no doubt that you did as well and that is all that can be asked.... See More
To my brothers and sisters who are reading this, it has been an honor working with you and it is difficult for me to imagine what next week will be like without you. You and your families will be in my prayers. In just a few hours many of us will report for our last night as Tulsa Police Officers and until the end of the shift, it will be business as usual. We will take calls and we will chase bad guys. When someone calls 911 screaming for help, we will generate complaint calls getting there as fast as we can. And when we get there, we will rush to protect someone who cannot protect themselves… with our lives if need be.
I love you guys
-J345
“You’re a cop because you don’t know how not to be one. If you feel this way, you’re a cop. If you don’t, you’re not.”
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