Police Union to New York Mayor: You’re Not Welcome at Our Funerals

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio’s reaction to the death of Eric
Garner may seem like
weak sauce to advocates of
serious police reform, but it still went too far many members
of the NYPD. If you go to the website of the Patrolmen’s Benevolent
Association—the largest of the city’s police unions—the first thing
you’ll see is this notice:

The downloadable document looks
like this:

I’ve seen no figures on how many officers have actually
submitted such a request, but that’s almost beside the point. This
is the line the association is taking. Don’t expect even the
smallest changes to be easy.

Bonus links: Earlier this year, Garner’s death led to a
war
between the police union and the teachers union, which in turn
provoked some skirmishes
within the teachers union as well.