Latest Trend In Law Enforcement: We Are Politically Incorrect’ Declarations

A new trend seems to be catching on in law enforcement: signs and announcements proclaiming “we are politically incorrect.” It follows closely on the heels of this year’s round of police departments with “In God we trust” stickers added to patrol cars.

The trend appears to have taken root in Harris County, Georgia, where Sheriff Mike Jolley posted a surprising sign appearing to announce that the entire town is opposed to political correctness.

Welcome to Harris County Georgia
WARNING: Harris County is politically incorrect. We say: Merry Christmas, God Bless America, and In God We Trust We salute our troops and our flag. If this offends you… LEAVE!

Sheriff Jolley and his county received a lot of attention over the declaration that they are not politically correct. He told the Washington Post that the sign is meant to assure the ‘silent majority’ that they have the right to speak up, and assured them that he supports the right of others to disagree with the sentiment on the sign, and to worship whatever God they choose.

He did not address that the sign appears to make a sweeping statement about the political and religious sentiments of his entire county, or whether a demand that the nonreligious leave a given jurisdiction would be a blatant violation of constitutional rights. He did note that the county’s taxpayers didn’t foot the bill — he paid for the ‘not politically correct’ sign out of his own pocket.

Harris County is not the beginning of the trend. It’s more like where the idea got a foothold — you see, Jolley says he got the idea when he saw similar signs in another state. He doesn’t say where these signs are, and may be referring not to law enforcement or government, but to businesses that have placed similar signs. However, it appears the sentiment is indeed spreading.

This week, a North Carolina Sheriff’s Department made a similar proclamation. Beaufort County did not erect a sign, however. Instead, their Sheriff’s Department made the proclamation on their official Facebook page, posting a photo of text that echoes the sentiment from Harris County.

Notice
This office is politically incorrect
We say
Merry Christmas
God Bless America
We salute our flag &
Give thanks to our troops
In God we trust

It’s closed with the notice, “This message fully endorsed by Sheriff Ernie Coleman.” The post is pinned, ensuring that it is the first thing any visitor to the page sees.

What does it mean to be politically incorrect, anyway? The Cambridge English Dictionary describes political correctness as an effort to use language that might be unkind or offensive to an particular group.

So, in essence, when a police department declares, “We are politically incorrect!” they appear to be stating that they will not make an effort to use language that is non-discriminatory or inoffensive.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a church-state separation group based in Wisconsin, has been addressing the issue of ‘In God We Trust’ stickers on police cars since this summer, and continues to contact law enforcement agencies, saying the messages are exclusionary to nonreligious citizens and asking departments to “respect the rights of conscience of all citizens, including those who in good conscience reject belief in a god.”

They’re also speaking out on the ‘politically incorrect’ sign trend, with co-founder Annie Laurie Gaylor telling the Washington Post.

“[The sign] makes visitors and citizens who are not religious or who believe in separation of church and state feel unwelcome. It’s essentially turning believers into insiders and minorities or non-believers into outsiders.”

The organization has not expressed that it is currently taking any legal actions in these cases, which it does only when a FFRF member who lives in the jurisdiction and/or is affected by a policy requests it, but their church/state separation FAQ page explains why these signs are different when erected by a government agency rather than by a retail establishment: simply put, retailers are not government bodies, and are free to express religious preference, while government agencies are not to express preference for one religious group or exclusion of others.

It seems likely, though, that other law enforcement agencies will follow the trend, as occurred with the ‘In God we trust’ bumper stickers — over 60 different law enforcement departments have since added similar stickers, after the complaints and accolades received by the first few departments to do so. The bumper stickers also have a certain level of legal protection, as a national motto, that the ‘we are politically incorrect’ declarations do not, which could make a difference if either is challenged in court.

[Image via Facebook]