Rallies expressing support for law enforcement officers and agencies are starting to become commonplace in Western North Carolina, but as the election draws near, Republican candidates are asserting more and more ownership of the “back the badge” movement. 

The Aug. 1 Black Lives Matter demonstration in Maggie Valley may have been bigger and louder than its predecessor on July 18, but it was also something else — safer.

A rally hosted by Macon County Sheriff Robert Holland in downtown Franklin July 25 drew hundreds of law enforcement officers and spectators as well as a who’s who of Western North Carolina elected officials and candidates, all with one simple message: “We’ve got your back.”

Despite the complexity of discussions surrounding reform and accountability in American law enforcement, it’s likely that many issues would disappear if it were possible to consistently follow two simple rules: Hire only good cops and fire all bad cops. 

By Boyd Allsbrook • Contributing writer | In light of the recent national uproar over police brutality, law enforcement training has rocketed to the forefront of public discussion. It’s a complicated topic; not merely for the politically charged rhetoric it now commonly evokes, but also because approaches to training new officers vary widely from state to state, county to county and agency to agency. It’s a convoluted process and made more difficult to grasp still when you factor in how agencies emphasize different aspects of training on even a personal basis. 

Innocent people murdered in their own homes, police departments equipped with military-grade weapons, students with school resource officers but not a counselor to be found, district attorneys unwilling or unable to prosecute police who have broken the law — these stories heard across the nation have birthed the movement to “Defund the Police.”

Competing theories as to the nature of proposed police reform have emerged, with one being that law enforcement budgets should be cut drastically and the other being that they should be increased drastically. 

The death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police officers less than two months ago has added new fuel to the long-simmering debate over criminal justice reform.

Last week, as demonstrations were taking place across the nation to call attention to police brutality and racial injustice, Canton resident Becky Trull was struck with an idea. 

By Boyd Allsbrook • Contributing writer | Type “George Floyd Protests, Police” into your Google images search bar. What comes up? Picture after picture of menacing police dressed in riot gear facing down angry protestors. Brawling. Calls to abolish the police force. Cruisers engulfed in flames. Police stations graffitied with ACAB — “All Cops Are Bastards.” Riots. Looting. Arson. Tear gas. Rubber bullets. Cops shot in drive-bys. Protestors gone the same way. Storeowners beaten to a pulp.