‘Do you oppose police brutality?’ she asked two officers. They took a knee with her.
Two Chicago police officers are in hot water with their department after they were photographed kneeling in protest with a community activist.
Aleta Clark, an anti-gun violence activist, wrote on her Instagram Sunday that she walked into the police station and asked two “Men of Color” if they were “against police brutality and racism.” She asked if they supported former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and asked them to kneel with her when they said yes.
The photo that resulted received nearly 2,000 likes over a daylong period and landed on the cover of the Chicago Sun-Times.
Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman for the Chicago Police Department, told the Chicago Tribune that the officers will be reprimanded and reminded of the department’s polices.
The police department’s rules of conduct prohibit officers from “participating in any partisan political campaign or activity while on duty.” Officers are also prohibited from participating in political activities while in uniform.
The officers in the photo have not been identified.
“I stand with them,” Clark later said in an interview with local media. “I think that picture speaks volumes. I stand behind you. I’m going to get others to stand behind you, because you stood for us. That’s heroic.”
The photo comes in the midst of a national furor over athletes protesting against racism, police brutality, and President Donald Trump. On Sunday, more than 200 players knelt or sat for the NFL national anthem in solidarity after Trump called on league officials to fire athletes who did not stand for the anthem.
The protests can largely be traced back to former San Francisco 69ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who kickstarted a national movement for taking a knee during the national anthem during games.
This story was originally published September 26, 2017 at 12:17 PM with the headline "‘Do you oppose police brutality?’ she asked two officers. They took a knee with her.."