Following a string of tragic events around the country involving police officers, a group of creative professionals got to work on an initiative called ‘The Good Cop.’ The Good Cop aims to foster an honest and positive conversation about law enforcement on social media and via their website, thegoodcop.org.

“As there are in any profession, there are problems and challenges in law enforcement, and the police officers we’ve met agree,” said Jeremy Angeletti, co-founder of The Good Cop. “They acknowledge that there are people in the profession whose actions are inexcusable, but the overwhelming majority of interactions between police and the communities they serve are positive. The Good Cop is our way of giving them the support they deserve.” The initiative has received no government funding. Angeletti points out, “The project is entirely community-driven.”

Jeremy, a Project Manager at Rhino Media, brought the idea to the company owner, Kevin Romeo. Romeo agreed with the sentiment of The Good Cop. “One of our goals as a company is to positively impact the communities that we are a part of,” says Romeo. Since January of 2015, the team at Rhino have been working with the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety to make The Good Cop a reality.

“The number one issue for police agencies is trust and con‑dence between the community and the department. In order to foster trust and confidence, we are looking at ways that we can go from a -what some might term – warrior mindset, to a guardian mindset. We want to serve in partnership with the entire community,” said Capt. Jim Mallery, Operations Division Captain KDPS. Captain Mallery and his team offered their time, resources, and insight to the project as well.

On September 14th, The Good Cop went live. They’re asking for your involvement. If you have a story or photo of a police officer doing something positive for you and the community, share it on social media and tag it with #goodcop. As thegoodcop.org explains, “…we aren’t looking for fancy,” so they’re asking you to share things that might even seem ordinary. When you share your #goodcop post, also include a localized hashtag (such as #goodcopkzoo here in Kalamazoo). If your encounter merits special recognition, you can submit your story via the ‘Nominate an Officer’ page on thegoodcop.org. More information is available at thegoodcop.org.

Photo credit for cover photo: Dan Holm / Shutterstock.com