Council to debate possibility of flying police, fire department flags at City Hall

CINCINNATI (FOX19) - The possibility of flying a thin blue line flag and the flag of the Cincinnati Fire Department will be discussed on Wednesday when the City Council meets.

The American flag is currently at half-staff in honor of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, but later this week Councilmember Betsy Sundermann introduced a motion to add a thin blue line flag and the official flag of the Cincinnati Fire Department.

Having those two flags fly would coincide with the Blue Mass for police officers next Sunday at St. Peter in Chains Cathedral, which is across the street from City Hall.

The motion says this is in support of the city’s police officers, firefighters, first responders, and those employed in public safety.

Cincinnati FOP President Sgt. San Hils says the thin blue line flag is a symbol of what officers are.

“It’s obviously the American flag with the thin blue line in it and that’s what police officers are. We are the thin blue line and we’re what makes America, modern America possible. Without police protection, without the police out there enforcing the law, but doing it with respect to the citizens in mind.”

A debate on defunding the police is a topic Sundermann promised will happen on Wednesday at City Hall.

Regarding the issue of defunding the police, Sudermann points to a law and public safety report that shows police policies led to the lowest violent crime rate on record in Cincinnati in 2019.

In a press release, Sundermann explained the idea of defuding the police is “poorly conceived, but ill-timed.”

“The time to dismantle police is not when they are facing intense public animosity, when we need them to be keeping us safe and secure the most,” Sundermann was quoted as saying the release.

She went to explain the motion is a way to show support and appreciation for the CPD.

“It demonstrates our commitment to the safety and security of our communities and neighborhoods, that we will not allow rash decision making and the boisterous voices of the few to drown out the quieter voices of the many who still support and are grateful to our police,” Sundermann stated in the release.

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