A Georgia law enforcement officer went viral over the weekend after telling Black Lives Matter protesters that he “has much respect” for them, but that he only kneels “for one person.”
According to Fox News, State Trooper O’Neal Saddler was allegedly asked to kneel during a protest in Hartwell.
“If I didn’t have any respect, I wouldn’t [be here],” Saddler explained. “I was supposed to be out of town this weekend with my wife. I took off today, this weekend, but I’m out here to make sure y’all are safe.”
“Don’t go there with respect, OK?” the officer went on. “I have much respect, but I only kneel for one person.”
Someone in the crowd replied, “And that’s God,” which the trooper confirmed, “God.”
Georgia State Trooper O’Neal Saddler was asked to kneel and this was his response at Hartwell, Ga Black Lives Matter Protest-Armani Singleton
Posted by Ni’Rubyan Photography on Sunday, June 7, 2020
“God Bless him!” Ryan Fournier, founder and co-chairman of Students for Trump, wrote in a tweet.
This is Georgia State Trooper O’Neal Saddler.
He was asked to kneel today, and this was his response.
God Bless him! ?? pic.twitter.com/DZOGg6qnFn
— Ryan Fournier (@RyanAFournier) June 7, 2020
Saddler’s bold statement comes as police officers across the nation have been seen “taking a knee” in solidarity with protesters, even as many of those same protesters push to defund the police.
An open letter by BLM partners calling for the police to be defunded has been signed by singers John Legend, Common, and Lizzo, and actresses Natalie Portman, Brie Larson, America Ferrera, Taraji P. Henson, veteran leftist activist Jane Fonda, and ACLU executive director Anthony Romero.
The letter declares that public funds should instead be diverted toward “building healthy communities” or “to the health of our elders and children, to neighborhood infrastructure, to education, to childcare, to support a vibrant Black future.”
Rather than doing away with the police system, however, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick echoed Saddler’s comments and declared that America can only end racism by turning back to God.
“We need a culture change to address this racism. You cannot change the culture of a country until you change the character of mankind,” Patrick declared in an appearance on Fox News @ Night.
Patrick touched on the tragic death of George Floyd, calling it a “crime.”
“The crime against George Floyd, in my view, was a crime against all black America and against humanity and we’re coming together,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of healing to do and we can’t do it unless we turn to God and we need to do that now more than ever.”
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