THIN BLUE LINE FLAG

Last fall my wife and I were on a camping trip in central Indiana. We noticed on the opposite side of the camping aisle a flag pole displaying the American Flag and another flag supporting the Black, White and Blue colors. We googled it and investigated what the Black, White and Blue was all about.

The Thin Blue Line Flag is a symbol used by law enforcement, originating in the United Kingdom but now prevalent in the United States and Canada to commemorate fallen and to show support for the living law enforcement officers and to symbolize the relationship of law enforcement in the community as the protectors of fellow civilians from criminal elements.

In the United States of America, each stripe on the emblem represents certain respective figures; the Blue center line represents law enforcement, the top Black stripe represents the public and the bottom represents the criminals. The idea behind the graphic is that law enforcement (The Blue Line) is what stands between the violence and victimization by criminals and the would-be victims of crime.

Thin Blue Line commemorates fallen law enforcement officers and to symbolize the relationship of law enforcement in the community as the protectors of civilians from criminal element of the symbol assert that the identifier is intended to show support for police. In the wake of controversies over police shootings, the Thin Blue Line Flag has become popular among law enforcement personnel, their families and supporters showing they relentlessly stand behind those who are willing to sacrifice so much.

The meaning of The Blue Line Flag: The Blue represents the officer and the courage they find deep inside when faced with insurmountable odds. The Black background was designed as constant reminder of our fallen brother and sister officers. The Line is what police officers protect, the barrier between anarchy and a civilized society, between order and chaos, between respect for decency and lawlessness. Together they symbolize the camaraderie law enforcement officers all share, a brotherhood like none other.

Being a retired Industrial Technology (woodworking) teacher for 40 years at Elmhurst and Wayne High Schools, I decided to build a prototype of the Thin Blue Flag. I built it out of an old picket fence 36” long and 24” wide with 13 two-inch stripes and 50 stars. I liked it so well that I decided to build the Thin Blue Line Flag for all the Elmhurst and Wayne graduates that are now officers in the Fort Wayne Police Department. I contacted Sgt. Brad Griffin and Captain Dave Nelson to get me a list of all Elmhurst and Wayne graduates. Wow, to my amazement, there were 27 police officers, plus 2 officers in the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and 1 in the Ossian Police Department. As one can tell, I was very busy, in my man cave, working on the 30 wooden flags. I contacted all of the officers to come over to my house, at different times and dates to pickup their Thin Blue Line Flags.

The moral to my story is that I am worried for the lives and controversies over the police shootings in this day and age.