The Dallas Police chief joined officers Monday morning at Dallas ISD's John Neely Bryan Elementary school to hand out books to students. Each student received a wrapped book and will be able to choose three additional books at a book fair this week.
"We do an amazing job taking the criminal element off the street. I'm very proud of the men and women for risking their lives to do that, but the at the same time, our community needs to see these officers truly care," says Chief Eddie Garcia. "They truly care about this city, they truly care about the victims, they truly care about our children."
The book fair is sponsored by AT&T. Dallas police worked with the organization, Safer Dallas, Better Dallas, which aims to develop closer relationships between neighborhoods and police.
"We know this is such an important element for [kids] to have this positive interaction with officers in uniform," says Safer Dallas, Better Dallas Chairwoman Courtney Underwood. "We also want to do everything we can to give these kiddos the best education they can have and they deserve."
Garcia says Dallas Police chose John Neely Bryan Elementary because of its location in an "at-risk" area where police have focused enforcement.
"We know these kids see our men and women work very, very hard and sacrifice every day, particularly in these neighborhoods, to make sure we keep them safe and ensure we keep violence down," Garcia says. "The first time these kids see us cannot be in a moment of crisis."
Garcia says book giveaways can help students feel more comfortable around police and build long-term partnerships in neighborhoods to advance the department's mission described as "weeding and seeding." Earlier this year, Garcia announced the strategy, saying Dallas police would work to "weed out" the criminal element in the most dangerous neighborhoods and "seed" the areas for positive action and economic development.
Earlier this month, Garcia delivered statistics to the Dallas City Council showing violent crime had dropped 7% since a crime reduction plan was launched in May. Aggravated assault had dropped 5%, murders were down 26% and robbery was down 27%.
But Monday, Garcia said greeting kids and giving them books could give officers a chance to show their "human side."
"That's what these officers do every day. This isn't something they're pretending to do. They love doing that. They're more than just the uniform they wear. It comes natural to them. It's fantastic to see the kids embrace them in the manner they're doing," he says. "It gives back, and it shows our community we're more than just the handcuffs we wear on our belt. That's important for any police department, not just the City of Dallas."
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