Throughout my time in high school and college, and just in general, I’ve seen police viewed in a bad light. A good number of people in my generation, primarily, refer to them as pigs and always avoid them. Not because they are doing something they shouldn’t, but they think that the police officers are actively on the hunt for the next victim.
On social media, you are constantly coming across videos of some cop being a tyrant, aggressive and generally abusing their power. Because of this, even the press influenced my preconceptions about what a police officer was like. Out of curiosity, I decided to go to the Pittsburg Police Department to see if I could interview one of the officers there.
The officer I interviewed, named Gerry Graner, was polite to me. We went to a conference room so that I could ask my questions. I asked him how negative portrayals of law enforcement in the media have affected his life as a police officer, as well as his job while he’s out on the street or working a case.
He described how his work with canine officers helped him bridge the gap with the community, showing that they aren’t there just to bite people. But he also agreed that many officers are portrayed negatively by the media, and acknowledged it’s just part of our lives.
I then asked Graner what kind of experiences or interactions he’s had with people and whether they were mostly good or bad, to which he said that it all goes back to respect and that at the end of the day we are all people. As long as we treat each other with respect, there’s no issue and everybody deserves respect no matter what the scenario.
“When you ask me, overall, positive versus negative? Yes… Have there been bad times in this job in the seven, going on eight, years I’ve done this? Yes. Have I held dying children in my arms? Yes. Have I had traumatic experiences? Yes, absolutely. That comes with the territory,” Graner said. “But that being said, the positive far outweighs the negative. I’ve had so many fulfilling moments in this job, and I can speak from the bottom of my heart and say that this is absolutely what I believe I’m supposed to be doing.”
By the time I had finished the interview with Officer Graner, I’d say that, while the media does portray law enforcement officers in a bad light, you shouldn’t let that affect how you view your local police department. At the end of the day, they are people, too. And while you may have had bad experiences with police in the past, I’m confident that those experiences won’t involve officers from the Pittsburg Police Department in the future.
