FLASHBACK: Milwaukee Cops Went On 1981 Strike After Two Cops Were Killed And Cops Thought Local Official Justified It
In December 1981, police officers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin went on a 16-hour strike after two police officers were shot and killed by a black teenager and a Milwaukee alderman stated, “The person could have suspected that the police were simply going to kill him, and because of that, he might have acted out of fear rather than out of any kind of sensible surrender to the police.”
Following the comment, roughly 2,200 police officers walked out, according to UPI.
“Police Association President Robert Kliesmet called the walkout and then said he would ask the officers to stay out until the Common Council considered a list of demands that would provide safer working conditions,” UPI reported, adding that Kliesmet said Alderman Roy Nabors’ comments “were the straw that broke the camel’s back” in reference to incidents in which police had been accused of brutality and unnecessary force.
A spokesman for the police association stated, “The officers just don’t know where to go anymore. This is causing so much confusion to our men on the street, they don’t know what proper action to take any more.”
https://www.dailywire.com/news/flashback-milwaukee-cops-went-on-1981-strike-after-two-cops-were-killed-and-cops-thought-local-official-justified-it