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Video: Fire Chief Removing Thin Blue Line Stripe from Tulsa Fire Trucks

The Tulsa (OK) Fire Department is removing blue stripes from its fire trucks because the chief thinks the symbols of law enforcement support may send the wrong message to some people.

June 7, 2017
Video: Fire Chief Removing Thin Blue Line Stripe from Tulsa Fire Trucks

 

1 min to read


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The Tulsa (OK) Fire Department is removing blue stripes from its fire trucks because the chief thinks the symbols of law enforcement support may send the wrong message to some people, reports KOTV.

The Tulsa Fire Department added the stripe after the Dallas police shooting as a symbol of solidarity with law enforcement, but Fire Chief Ray Driskell said he's following his heart and taking the stripes off.

"Some people made a connection that, with Officer Shelby, the blue line meant that they supported her or that they back her or that they backed the decision from the jurors," he said. But the chief said that is not why the fire department put the tape on their trucks.

That’s why Driskell said the fire department has to remain neutral and remove the stripe. "I don't need a blue stripe on my fire truck to show solidarity with the police department; they know that we support them," he said.

Driskell asked captains at every fire department across the city to remove the stripes immediately.

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