Durham Councilwoman Says Cops and Soldiers Are Most Dangerous People With Guns Print
Local Government
By Administrator   
Thursday, 23 June 2016 13:53
Durham - Durham City Councilwoman Jillian Johnson said she doesn’t plan to apologize or resign following public backlash to a Facebook post that said “the most dangerous people with guns are cops and soldiers.”
 
Law enforcement officials asked Johnson to publicly apologize for the Facebook post.
 
“It is a slap in the face of everyone that protects our city and our country,” says a statement from the Durham County Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 2. “While Ms. Johnson is entitled to her opinion, she is an elected official and should be held to a higher standard.”
 
Johnson said on  her personal Facebook page after members of the U.S. House of Representatives unsuccessfully called for measures to curb gun sales to people on terrorism watch lists following the Orlando shooting in the Pulse nightclub.
 
“I am all about keeping guns away from dangerous people,” she wrote, “but I feel like more of us should be pointing out that the most dangerous people with guns are cops and soldiers, and that the no-fly list and FBI anti-terror efforts are seriously corrupted by entrapment, racial profiling and Islamophobia.”
 
Johnson’s initial post drew emails Tuesday and Wednesday from residents, current and former members of the military and law enforcement calling for her resignation and chiding her for her comments. 
 
Johnson posted a clarification Wednesday morning, saying “state-sanctioned violence causes more harm” than non-state sanctioned violence.
 
“I believe this is true both because the approval of those in authority and often the general public gives a veneer of acceptability to actions we would otherwise condemn, but also because states have the capacity to spend huge resources equipping and funding people to use force in defense of their interests.”
 
The post expressed concern about incarceration rates, police-related homicide rates and how much money the United States spends on the military.
 
“We should not ignore these facts, or wrongly assume that those who believe that this situation is fundamentally unjust” and should not continue harboring a hatred for police and soldiers, the post states. “I certainly find a great many of the actions taken by militaries and police forces here in the U.S. and around the world extremely troubling, and I also respect the humanity of those who do not share this disagreement.”
 
Last Updated on Thursday, 23 June 2016 13:56