It’s not the uniform

Though I appreciate Councilman Mike Fagan’s outside-the-box thinking, I don’t think new police uniforms are going to do anything to build public trust in our Police Department. It kind of goes back to the “you can put lipstick on a mule, but it’s still a mule” concept. Yes, I’m trying to be nice.

Some companies change their name and fool the people into thinking it’s a new business. A good example is AIG. The company took billions in taxpayer bailout money, gave its people bonuses and planned a big party. When executives realized the huge public relations disaster that resulted, they changed the name of its auto insurance arm from AIG Direct to 21st Century Insurance.

New uniforms are similar. It’s an attempt to change an image and increase public trust. However, the real problem with our Police Department is the outrageously powerful Police Guild and its prejudicial favoritism for its officers. Until the guild is demoted in power and the police have civilian oversight, our SPD will never change.

The problem isn’t the uniform; it’s who wears the uniform.

David Bray

Spokane