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Support grows for local police
ST. LOUIS -- While some local police departments are well-equipped, others are not, sometimes working without protective Kevlar vests.
"Our hope is to get every single officer who's not in a vest, in a vest. We want every single officer to have the necessary protection," said a spokeswoman for Officer Needs Assistance USA.
Officer Needs Assistance USA is a St. Louis-based organization started by supporters of former Ferguson policeman Darren Wilson. A grand jury did not indict Wilson for the controversial shooting death of teenager Michael Brown. Wilson supporters decided to continue raising money, not for Wilson, but for policeman who are under-equipped.
"We decided we could help them, one officer at a time by raising funds to get them those protective vest that they need," said the spokeswoman.
Officer Needs Assistance USA is raising money by selling wristbands and t-shirts. There is also a GoFundMe account for donations to buy protective vests. The first local policeman to receive a protective vest is a Wellston officer, Travis Parrish.
"I made the call to him and his first response was my wife is going to be so excited," said the spokeswoman, "and very shortly after we got that letter of thanks from her that we have on our We Are Darren Wilson Facebook page, and that was very rewarding."
Sometimes support for police can be as simple as a blue light bulb.
"It's something that's been around for a while, the blue lights," said Desiree Clark of St. Louis.
The blue lights are a symbol of the Police Lives Matter movement, which pays respect to fallen police officers, like the two New York City policemen who were recently shot and killed.
"Anytime an officer was injured or hurt, falling in the line of duty, you put the lights out," said Clark.
Clark, whose mother and father are police officers, has a blue light bulb shining outside her house. She hopes those with a negative opinion of police will reconsider, even as nationwide protests continue about controversial civilian deaths at the hands of police.
"Open their eyes. Stop being so close-minded when it comes to police officers," said Clark. "Stop thinking they're all bad. Stop thinking they're all out to get you because they're not."
For information about Officer Needs Assistance USA,
http://www.officerneedsassistanceusa.com/.