Profs. Lyles and Gibson: When It Comes to First Responders, Who Has Their Backs?
September 7, 2021
Contact: Office of Advancement and External Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739
Writing in The Fayetteville Observer, Alan Lyles, the Henry A. Rosenberg Professor of Government, Business, and Nonprofit Partnerships, and Ed Gibson, associate professor in the School of Public and International Affairs at The University of Baltimore, raise questions about the aftermath of major catastrophes and the effects on first responders. From 9/11 to the Jan. 6 riot at the Capitol, they say, public officials have come up short in delivering the services that first responders deserve.
In the wake of a number of officers' suicides following the riot, providing the necessary support "seems out of reach for hundreds of the legislators they protected that day and continue to protect today," Gibson and Lyles write. "The House of Representatives passed legislation funding resources for the Capitol Police on May 20, but the Senate took two more months to reach a bill with sufficient bipartisan support to avoid filibuster. Neither bill was unanimous—the first passed by just 213-212—and the second faced opposition by some of the same lawmakers who were in the Capitol on January 6. What political calculations are they making?"
Profs. Gibson and Lyles point out that similar tactics of delay and deny have unfolded in the years since 9/11. When first-responders require funds for the long-term health consequences of that attack, they say, the federal government has shown little interest in assisting with their care.
"As a nation, we are better than this," the pair write. "The Congress of the United States should be better than this. Do the legislators who opposed legislation assume voters don't know what's going on or don't care about rank-and-file police officers?"
Read the op-ed in The Fayetteville Observer.
Learn more about Profs. Alan Lyles and Ed Gibson.