To Wear or Not To Wear…
Frank Borelli
Editor-in-Chief
Officer.com
Not that long ago one of our poll questions on Officer.com had to do with what medals and awards meant for various agencies. Out of the over 1,000 votes, 23% said that “everyone knows they’re worthless” with 35% saying “only a few really mean anything.” Only 7% replied “Every one of them requires accomplishment and sacrifice”. That, and my experience traveling to various agencies around the country, made me think about the different outlook we (officers) have about awards, commendations, medals, etc.
In my area the most common awards are “Officer of the Year” and the “Chief’s Award”. The Officer of the Year (OY) award is usually awarded to an officer by an agency and/or a professional organization for a particular action or event. An example would be an officer who jumps into a river to save someone from drowning in a wrecked car. That single act of heroism might earn the award. The Chief’s Award (CA) can be awarded for such a single act of service, but it can also be awarded to the officer who is consistently the best performing, hasn’t had a sick day, has a good conviction rate, etc. In other words, the CA is something the Chief can use to recognize that which he feels is a good example of a behavior he endorses or approves of.
There are other valor awards, length-of-service awards, etc but many of them aren’t even recognized by other officers on the agency that awards them. Further, many officers only wear their awards during special events, court, etc. I know that many of the officers I worked with would never think about wearing their ribbons for daily duty. In their mind it was just one more shiny thing to shoot at - as if that badge isn’t big and shiny enough.
In my travels, from what I’ve seen, it seems to me that officers working for larger agencies, such as New York City or Washington DC, are more inclined to wear their ribbons and awards with their daily uniform. I don’t know if that’s because it’s required or because the display garners a higher level of respect or possibly another reason. I’ve seen officers joke and chuckle at the pride some officers display by wearing all their ribbons all the time. I’ve seen others scoff at the idea of ever wearing an “incomplete” uniform - meaning without every piece that should be pinned on, pinned on.
What are your thoughts on this? Does your agency award many items? Are they mandated for uniform wear? Do you like it? Think it’s a waste?
Share your thoughts…
My former agency started awards, they were first not accepted but soon became a staple of the daily uniform. Granted, some officers on mid’s and afternoon watches don’t wear them for tactics or they know it is more to take on and off when you switch to a fresh uniform. My current agency, I started a similar policy (yes, I’m the chief here) and it took off. These officers wear them. It is not the old military addage of sooner or later everybody gets one or the “PX Hero” analogy. But, I incorperated special units (FTO, Trainer/Inst, DARE, Bike, HNT, SWAT) these you deserve. Life saving pin and etc are also worn. Despite how some say they do not want them, most will wear them and defensive of the ones they earned (through deed or task). Most all wear them proudly for they are earned and not issued. That is the difference. One side bar, my policy limits it to three (3), no Central American generals here, just deserving men and women who were recognized for their job well done.
I worked for a small agency in Missouri in which every single officer had green bars, blue bars, and red bars. The Chief who served from 94-07 was a fan of handing out awards at nearly every city council meeting; it got to be a running joke about awards. Strangely, some officers got awards from doing very little while those who were hard working but less politically inclined got nothing. We saw the award pins as political service, not public service.
Awards are nice to get if/when they are earned. However, putting them on a “daily” uniform is something that should not be done. Leave the pins/awards for special occasions or large public events. The best looking uniform is one that is not cluttered up with metals/ribbons all over the thing. The military does it in a very meaningful way. Your dress uniform is when you put the ribbons, etc on. To me, one of the most impressive looking uniforms is that of the LAPD, where it shows to me that “less is better” on a uniform. You put the badge on, name plate, rank if you have it and go to work. I can take or leave the patches on a uniform. Lots of medals/ribbons on a duty uniform is something that just does not look right. Again, just my two cents…..
In our department we have medals or as the rank and file call them now “prizes”. Our Chief loves to reward the men with medals for mediocre all in a days work policing. The large amount of awards given for for what most consider “doing our jobs” takes away from the rare occassion when an officer really goes above and beyond.
Medals, ribbons, awards, or whatever you want to call them have thier place. I personally don’t feel they should be worn on a patrol uniform. If you feel the need to be validated for your actions you are in the wrong profession . I am currently an Auxiliary Police Officer, I know alot of guys scoff at us, but I bust my butt everytime I go out. I have “earned” several uniform ribbons, yet I have never even picked them up. I agree with Matt less is more. The greatest “Award” you can get is a Thank You. The best thing that ever happen to me was at a local festival. A small young girl came and pulled on my pant leg. My first reaction: Great a lost kid now I have to try and find Mom and Dad. She was about six or seven, I knelt down and said “What do you need sweetie.” She looked up at me smiled and said “Thank you for protecting us” hugged me and walked away. I admit I got a bit choked up, no Award will EVER replace that feeling.
A small part of me agrees, there are certain things that should not be worn on the daily uniform (i.e. Officer Of The Year award). But I was a soldier before I was a cop… I have done things as a soldier and a cop (to include saving lives) that I was awarded a medal, ribbon, or citation for… I did not ask for it…. I did not expect it…. I didn’t do anything for recognition or appraisal… I did it because I know the meaning of dedication, SELFLESS SERVICE, Honor, and Integrity… as do almost ALL of my brothers in green AND blue! If your Commanding Officer, whether that is a military officer or a Chief-of-Police, decides to award you for that service, you have every right to wear that citation or ribbon on your chest… Be proud of it! Be confident in the fact that, at one point in your Law Enforcement career, someone recognized that dedication and commitment to duty that makes you an every-day hero! Being a cop is a thankless job… All too often our brothers lay down their lives in the performance of their duties… And still, we receive more criticism and attacks than any other profession… As the saying goes, you can do two hundred things right and never hear of it, but do one thing wrong and you will never hear the end of it…. If you earned it, wear it with pride and not prejudice, be confident and continue to do the job you swore to do… Continue to be the leader in your community, continue to encourage others to excel in everything they do… And when you sleep at night, know that you have the courage to wake up the next day and do it all over again. Why? Because that’s who you are. You’re a Police Officer. It’s not a title, it’s a way of life. You live each day to help whoever you can, and make the community you serve a safe and healthy place to live and work… No, there is nothing wrong with a ribbon on your chest… You earned it, so wear it… And, whether wearing Army green or Officer blue, you will always be my hero…. God Bless!