The nation woke up Friday morning to the news of a shooting in Dallas that left five police officers dead and seven others injured. The shooting took place at a Black Lives Matter protest in the city organized in response to the shooting deaths of two black men by white police officers in Louisiana and Minnesota earlier this week.
Boston Mayor Marty Walsh issued a statement this morning in response to the shooting:
My thoughts are with the Dallas officers who were killed last night, and their families, and I'm praying for the fast recovery or the injured. I unequivocally condemn violence against law enforcement officers. Whatever motivated this horrific attack, we should do all we can as a community and a nation to prevent it from inflaming existing tensions around police interactions. As Martin Luther King Jr. said, violence solves no problem but is "a descending spiral ending in destruction for all." We can and we must work together to end all the deadly violence afflicting our country.
Governor Charlie Baker issued a response later this morning over Twitter:
My heart breaks for the families and loves ones of the innocent who lost their lives this week in Minnesota, Louisiana and Texas and I hope our nation can come together after a tumultuous and difficult period for so many across the country. Last night's deadly attacks on Dallas law enforcement represent a senseless and heinous crime against our brave first responders who put their lives at risk every day to keep our communities safe. Our administration is in constant communication with federal and local partners to ensure the safety and security of our communities in the Commonwealth.
Police across the state are reacting today to what happened in Dallas with concern and some anxiety. Lieutenant Bruce Apotheker of the Newton police says when officers go out today, the shootings will be on their mind:
When we signed up for the job, we knew that there were inherent dangers and risks involved. But we have so many dedicated officers out there that will do anything they can to help people. You know, we often hear the term 'the think blue line'. We have peace and order on one side, chaos and anarchy on the other. And those officers that are out there every single day, they are the thin blue line.
Michael Curry, president of the Boston branch of the NAACP, spoke on NECN this morning about the events in Dallas, and on the deaths of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling. Curry says he spent much of this week losing sleep over what happened in Louisiana and Minnesota. He says he and others are upset about the shooting deaths of police officers and adds this is about justice for all:
And just like we're seeing this sort of unified reaction around the loss of those five officers, we wanted to hear that sort of unified response around the loss of two young black men. And I think part of what you've seen is this sort of toxic rhetoric, is that there isn't this equal sort of response.
Police in Dallas continue to investigate the shootings. This is a developing story.
