Destructive Forces in The City: Remembering The Night Five Cops Were Killed in Dallas
/By Jimmy Meeks
Do you remember the night five police officers were shot to death at a protest in downtown Dallas? It was Thursday, July 7, 2016. The protest was in response to a Black man who had been shot to death by police in Baton Rouge, Louisiana two days earlier.
I’ll never forget it. I was there. I live less than 30 minutes from downtown Dallas. I went, not to participate, but spectate. I wanted to hear what they had to say.
Over a thousand people were there. The press would later report it was a “peaceful protest turned violent.” But that was not true. There wasn’t an ounce of peace in that place. There was, however, enough anger and hate to fill a coliseum.
One of the first speakers was a preacher, a white man: Dr. Jeff Hood. Surrounded by a cheering and angry crowd, he said:
I’m gonna say “God … damn white America.
God … damn white America.
White America is a f------ lie”...
The crowd loved his words. They were convinced they were doing the right thing, caught up in a righteous cause. They had no idea they had provided a stage, and created the perfect storm, for a killer to unleash his plan.
As I sat in my truck listening, a thought flashed in my mind:
There’s a lot of anger here.
There’s fixing to be a shooting.
I was alarmed by the thought. In a few minutes, about 500 yards from where I was sitting, an angry man was about to drive up, exit his car, and start killing police officers. When the smoke finally cleared, there were five dead police officers, and several more wounded. It was another dark page in the history of Dallas. It had happened right around the corner from where 19,221 days earlier the 35th president of the United States had been assassinated.
The courage, and compassion, of Dallas police officers was on full display that night. A woman who attended the protest with her children was also shot. When she fell to the ground, several Dallas officers jumped on her, shielding her from further harm. Let that sink in: They were willing to take any additional shots that may have been aimed at her. They were willing to sacrifice their own lives. The injured woman would later say...
“I'm so thankful for the Dallas Police Department.
They had no regard for their own life.
They stayed there with us... I've never seen anything like that.
The way they just came around us and guarded us like that.”
I served 35 years as a police officer. It was only six months after I retired that the tragedy in Dallas took place. I wanted back in. But who wants to hire someone only a few years shy of Social Security benefits?
So I got another idea. I will give my life to encouraging the officers who are presently on the streets. I just got back from a 6,200-mile road trip, visiting officers, speaking at roll calls, etc. I spent several days in Chicago, then over to Minneapolis: 1,700 miles west to Portland, and then 1,200 miles south to Denver.
I have no choice but to “pay it forward.” In my 35 years, I NEVER worked in the environment in which officers presently find themselves in. Thus, we must hurl all the encouragement we can in their direction.
That encouragement has taken the form of a brand new website we created for police (www.bluelifesupport.com). We also have a daily podcast for police and an app (BLUE LIFE SUPPORT MINISTRIES).
Yes – I have a spiritual approach to all this. I have no choice. King David wrote 3,500 years ago, “…I see violence and strife in the city…destructive forces are at work in the city” (Psalm 55:9-11). These forces are alive and well and have you in their sights. I beg you; be careful.
Jimmy Meeks is a 35-year retired police officer, having served in Oklahoma and Texas. He has over 4,600 hours of training. He is the founder of The Cornelius Project (www.bluelifesupport.com). He is also the founder of Sheepdog Seminars. Jimmy and Lt. Colonel Dave Grossman have hosted over 100 such seminars.
