The Middletown, CT police department located on Main Street has a Blue Lives Matter flag hanging in the lobby, and has been known to fly a Thin Blue Line flag out front.

While some family members and friends of police officers may use this symbol with the sole intention of supporting their loved ones, it has become clear that this symbol is being embraced by white supremacists and that its meaning has come to include beliefs that police should not be held accountable for the extrajudicial murder of Black citizens. 

It is time for Middletown to show that they denounce the murder of Black men and women, and that they are committed to justice for all members of our community. We are asking police chief William McKenna to show leadership and remove these symbols which have been embraced by white supremacists. The time is now for Middletown to show that we are dedicated to being different.

This symbolic act is not a solution to police violence. But by taking this first step, our city may be able to start a conversation around police violence that will lead to actual progress. As long as the flag hangs, we are sending a strong message to Black community members that the police are against them, and that they are neither safe nor welcome in the station. 

Middletown must be better than that.