View source for Thin blue line

{{Short description|Figurative reference to the position of police in society}}
{{About|the law enforcement phrase||The Thin Blue Line (disambiguation)}}
{{Pp|small=yes}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2024}}
[[Image:Thin Blue Line flag.svg|thumb|325px|The blue line symbol]]

The "'''thin blue line'''" is a term that typically refers to the concept of the [[police]] as the line between law-and-order and chaos in society.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hernandez |first=David |date=6 July 2020 |title=The thin blue line: The history behind the controversial police emblem |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/story/2020-07-06/the-thin-blue-line-the-complex-history-and-thoughts-behind-the-police-emblem |access-date=22 February 2024 |website=San Diego Union-Tribune |language=en-US |archive-date=15 January 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240115043723/https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/story/2020-07-06/the-thin-blue-line-the-complex-history-and-thoughts-behind-the-police-emblem |url-status=live }}</ref> The "blue" in "thin blue line" refers to the blue color of the uniforms of many police departments. 

The phrase originated as an allusion to the [[Thin Red Line (Battle of Balaclava)|Thin Red Line]] incident during the [[Crimean War]] in 1854, wherein a [[Scottish regiment]]—wearing [[Red coat (military uniform)|red uniforms]]—famously held off an [[Imperial Russian Army]] cavalry charge. Its use referring specifically to the police was popularized by [[Los Angeles Police Department]] Chief [[William H. Parker (police officer)|William H. Parker]] during the 1950s; author and police officer [[Joseph Wambaugh]] in the 1970s, by which time "thin blue line" was used across the United States; and [[Errol Morris]]'s documentary ''[[The Thin Blue Line (1988 film)|The Thin Blue Line]]''{{nbsp}}(1988). In recent years, the symbol has also been used by the [[Blue Lives Matter]] movement in the United States, which aims to show solidarity with the police, and a number of [[far-right]] movements in the U.S., particularly after the [[Unite the Right rally]] in 2017.

== History ==
[[File:Robert Gibb - The Thin Red Line.jpg|thumbnail|upright=1.2|[[The Thin Red Line (painting)|''The Thin Red Line'']], by [[Robert Gibb (painter)|Robert Gibb]] (1881)]]

The term is adapted from [[The Thin Red Line (Battle of Balaclava)|The Thin Red Line]], an incident of the 1854 [[Battle of Balaclava]] during the [[Crimean War]] where troops the [[93rd (Sutherland Highlanders) Regiment of Foot|93rd Regiment of Foot]] successfully stood their ground against a [[Imperial Russian Army]] cavalry charge.<ref name="Day" /> This action was widely publicized by the British press and depicted in several artworks, becoming one of the most famous episodes of the entire conflict. The name is now used for firefighters today.

In the book ''Lawtalk'', James Clapp and Elizabeth Thornburg say the term spread to other professions, e.g., a "thin white line of [[bishop]]s".<ref name="chammah-aspinwall-politico"/><ref name=":0">{{Cite web|date=8 June 2020|title=The Short, Fraught History of the 'Thin Blue Line' American Flag|url=https://www.themarshallproject.org/2020/06/08/the-short-fraught-history-of-the-thin-blue-line-american-flag|access-date=13 January 2021|website=The Marshall Project|archive-date=7 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210107204534/https://www.themarshallproject.org/2020/06/08/the-short-fraught-history-of-the-thin-blue-line-american-flag|url-status=live}}</ref>

An early known use of the phrase "thin blue line" is from a 1911 poem by Nels Dickmann Anderson, titled "The Thin Blue Line". In the poem, the phrase is used to refer to the [[United States Army]], alluding both to the Thin Red Line and to the fact that US Army soldiers wore blue uniforms from the eighteenth century through the nineteenth century.<ref name = "Day">{{cite web |url=https://timeline.com/police-thin-blue-line-efb34a45c28a/ |first=Meagan |last=Day |title=The problem with the 'thin blue line?' Cops aren't the army |date=14 July 2016 |website=Timeline (Medium)|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170524164343/https://timeline.com/police-thin-blue-line-efb34a45c28a?source=rss----cf5a12c2a7ad--police|archive-date=24 May 2017}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=August 2018}}<ref>{{cite book|title=The Voice of the Infinite|publisher=Sherman, French|url=https://archive.org/details/voiceofinfiniteo00anderich|page=[https://archive.org/details/voiceofinfiniteo00anderich/page/6 6]|quote=thin blue line.|access-date=1 October 2017|last1=Anderson|first1=N. D.|year=1911}}{{primary source inline|date=August 2018}}</ref>

It is unknown when the term was first used to refer to police. New York police commissioner Richard Enright used the phrase in 1922.<ref name="chammah-aspinwall-politico"/> In the 1950s, Los Angeles Police Chief [[William H. Parker (police officer)|Bill Parker]] often used the term in speeches, and he also lent the phrase to the department-produced television show ''[[The Thin Blue Line (1952 TV series)|The Thin Blue Line]]''.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-05-25-mn-236-story.html |title=Chief Parker Molded LAPD Image--Then Came the '60s : Police: Press treated officers as heroes until social upheaval prompted skepticism and confrontation |first=David |last=Shaw |date=25 May 1992 |work=Los Angeles Times |access-date=9 October 2017 |archive-date=6 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006172548/http://articles.latimes.com/1992-05-25/news/mn-236_1_police-brutality |url-status=live }}</ref> Parker used the term "thin blue line" to further reinforce the role of the LAPD.<ref name="wall-cmc-2019">{{cite journal |last1=Wall |first1=Tyler |date=2019 |title=The police invention of humanity: Notes on the "thin blue line" |journal=Crime, Media, Culture |volume=16 |issue=3 |pages=319–336 |doi=10.1177/1741659019873757 |s2cid=204382721}}</ref> As Parker explained, the thin blue line, representing the LAPD, was the barrier between law and order and social and civil anarchy.<ref>{{cite book |last=Lasley |first=J. |year=2012 |title=Los Angeles Police Department Meltdown: The fall of the professional reform model of policing |location=Boca Raton, Florida |publisher=Taylor & Francis |pages=1–26 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cQkEqlEjbX4C |isbn=9781439899175 |access-date=22 March 2023 |archive-date=16 November 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231116214123/https://books.google.com/books?id=cQkEqlEjbX4C |url-status=live }}.</ref>

The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' records its use in 1962 by ''The Sunday Times'' referring to police presence at an anti-nuclear demonstration.<ref>{{cite OED |thin |id=200782 |access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref> The phrase is also documented in a 1965 pamphlet by the [[Massachusetts]] government, referring to [[Massachusetts State Police|its state police force]], and in even earlier police reports of the NYPD. By the early 1970s, the term had spread to police departments across the United States.<ref name="Day" /> Author and police officer [[Joseph Wambaugh]] helped to further popularize the phrase with his police novels throughout the 1970s and 1980s.<ref name="chammah-aspinwall-politico">{{cite web |last1=Chammah |first1=Maurice |last2=Aspinwall |first2=Cary |title=The Short, Fraught History of the 'Thin Blue Line' American Flag |url=https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/06/09/the-short-fraught-history-of-the-thin-blue-line-american-flag-309767 |publisher=Politico |access-date=10 June 2020 |date=9 June 2020 |archive-date=27 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227212352/https://www.politico.com/news/magazine/2020/06/09/the-short-fraught-history-of-the-thin-blue-line-american-flag-309767 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The term was used for the title of [[Errol Morris]]'s 1988 [[documentary film]] ''[[The Thin Blue Line (1988 film)|The Thin Blue Line]]'' about the murder of the [[Dallas Police Department|Dallas Police]] officer Robert W. Wood.<ref name="Day" /> Judge Don Metcalfe, who presided over the trial of [[Randall Adams]], states in the film that prosecutor "Doug Mulder's final argument was one I'd never heard before: about the 'thin blue line' of police that separate the public from anarchy." The judge admitted to being deeply moved by the prosecutor's words, though the trial resulted in a wrongful conviction and death sentence.<ref>{{cite web |title=Thin Blue Line: Interview Gallery |url=http://www.errolmorris.com/film/tbl_transcript.html |publisher=Errol Morris |access-date=13 December 2016 |archive-date=15 November 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161115074620/http://www.errolmorris.com/film/tbl_transcript.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

According to a 2018 law review article, "thin blue line" also refers to an unwritten code of silence used to cover up police misconduct, also known as the [[blue wall of silence]],<ref name="Hodges">{{cite journal |last1=Hodges |first1=Ann C. |last2=Pugh |first2=Justin |date=June 2018 |title=Crossing the Thin Blue Line: Protecting Law Enforcement Officers Who Blow the Whistle |url=https://lawreview.law.ucdavis.edu/online/vol52/52-online-Hodges-Pugh.pdf |journal=UC Davis Law Review Online |volume=52 |issue=1 |pages=8 |ssrn=3193264 |access-date=31 July 2020 |archive-date=30 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200830011357/https://lawreview.law.ucdavis.edu/online/vol52/52-online-Hodges-Pugh.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> a term dating back to 1978.<ref name="Walker">{{cite news |last=Walker |first=Charles C. |date=5 September 1978 |title=Abuses |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/173283239/ |work=The Philadelphia Inquirer |location=Cheyney, Pennsylvania |access-date=31 July 2020 |archive-date=25 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125193904/https://www.newspapers.com/image/173283239/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Blue Lives Matter ===
{{Further|Black Lives Matter|Blue Lives Matter}}
[[File:Thin Blue Line Flag (United States).svg|thumb|The thin blue line U.S. flag has been banned by some police departments in the United States for its associations with ideologies described as "undemocratic, racist, and bigoted."<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":7" />]]
The "thin blue line" symbol has been used by the "[[Blue Lives Matter]]" movement, which emerged in 2014 as a rebuttal to the [[Black Lives Matter]] movement, and gained traction following the high-profile [[2014 killings of NYPD officers|homicides of NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu]] in [[Brooklyn, New York]].<ref name="Longazel">{{cite journal |last1=Longazel |first1=Jamie |date=1 July 2021 |title='Blue Lives Matter' and the legacy of blackface minstrelsy |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/03063968211012276?journalCode=racb |url-status=live |journal=Race & Class |volume=63 |issue=1 |pages=91–106 |doi=10.1177/03063968211012276 |s2cid=235716239 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230123130949/https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/03063968211012276?journalCode=racb |archive-date=23 January 2023 |access-date=23 January 2023 |quote=Blue Lives Matter countermovement, which emerged in 2014 as a rebuttal to Black Lives Matter and gained traction following high-profile|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="DempseyForst2018">{{cite book |author1=John S. Dempsey |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=K69EDwAAQBAJ |title=An Introduction to Policing |author2=Linda S. Forst |author3=Steven B. Carter |date=1 January 2018 |publisher=Cengage Learning |isbn=978-1-337-55875-4 |page=34 |quote=A pro-police movement called Blue Lives Matter was established in response to Black Lives matter and to the increasing attacks on law enforcement, which resulted in 63 officer line-of-duty deaths by gunfire in 2016. |access-date=24 January 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200918180329/https://books.google.com/books?id=K69EDwAAQBAJ |archive-date=18 September 2020 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Desmond-Harris |first=Jenée |date=22 December 2014 |title=Why it's wrong to blame protesters for the Brooklyn cop killings |url=https://www.vox.com/2014/12/22/7436141/police-killing-protests-NYPD |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726231959/https://www.vox.com/2014/12/22/7436141/police-killing-protests-NYPD |archive-date=26 July 2021 |access-date=26 July 2021 |website=Vox |language=en}}</ref>

The "thin blue line" has also been associated with [[White nationalism|white nationalists]] in the United States, particularly after the [[Unite the Right rally]] in 2017,<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Barring Of 'Thin Blue Line' Flag Display Stirs Controversy In Montgomery County |url=https://www.npr.org/local/305/2019/11/04/776060800/barring-of-thin-blue-line-flag-display-stirs-controversy-in-montgomery-county |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210811050236/https://www.npr.org/local/305/2019/11/04/776060800/barring-of-thin-blue-line-flag-display-stirs-controversy-in-montgomery-county |archive-date=11 August 2021 |access-date=13 August 2021 |website=NPR.org |language=en}}</ref><ref name=":5">{{Cite web |last=Rossman |first=Sean Rossman and Sean |title='Thin Blue Line': What does an American flag with a blue line mean? |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/18/thin-blue-line-what-does-american-flag-wit-flag-maker-condemns-use-white-supremacists-charlottesvill/580694001/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190114195113/https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/18/thin-blue-line-what-does-american-flag-wit-flag-maker-condemns-use-white-supremacists-charlottesvill/580694001/ |archive-date=14 January 2019 |access-date=13 August 2021 |website=USA TODAY |language=en-US}}</ref> who fly Thin Blue Line flags at their rallies.<ref name="Manchester" />

The thin blue line US flag has appeared regularly at [[Trump rally (disambiguation)|Trump rallies]].<ref name=":8">{{Cite web |date=20 October 2021 |title=Video shows pro-Trump rioters beating police officer under 'Blue Lives Matter' flag |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/blue-lives-matter-capitol-riot-b1942063.html |access-date=5 September 2023 |website=The Independent |language=en |archive-date=5 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905031626/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/crime/blue-lives-matter-capitol-riot-b1942063.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The flag, which ostensibly stands for solidarity with the police, also appeared at the [[January 6 United States Capitol attack]], during which police officers were beaten and attacked by the mob of Trump supporters and far right extremists.<ref name=":8" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Fuchs |first=Hailey |date=19 March 2021 |title=A former Green Beret used a flagpole to attack an officer in the Capitol riot, authorities say. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/19/us/jeffrey-mckellop-green-beret-capitol-riot.html |access-date=5 September 2023 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=22 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230622094317/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/19/us/jeffrey-mckellop-green-beret-capitol-riot.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Police departments in Madison, Wisconsin and Los Angeles, California have banned the thin blue line US flag because of its associations with views and ideologies described as "undemocratic, racist, and bigoted."<ref name=":6">{{Cite web |date=29 January 2021 |title=Police chief bans 'Thin Blue Line' imagery, says it's been 'co-opted' by extremists |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-imagery-says-it-s-n1256217 |access-date=5 September 2023 |website=NBC News |language=en |archive-date=17 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231017214632/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-imagery-says-it-s-n1256217 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":7">{{Cite web |date=21 January 2023 |title=LAPD ban of 'thin blue line' flags is latest salvo in culture war |url=https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-01-21/lapd-ban-of-thin-blue-line-flags-latest-salvo-in-culture-war |access-date=5 September 2023 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US |archive-date=5 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905025720/https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-01-21/lapd-ban-of-thin-blue-line-flags-latest-salvo-in-culture-war |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Merriam, Kansas]] city council voted to ban thin blue line flags from an annual memorial service in remembrance of fallen officers and other first responders.<ref>{{cite news |last1=D'Marko |first1=Dave |title=Merriam council votes to remove "thin blue line" flags from city event |url=https://fox4kc.com/news/merriam-council-votes-to-remove-thin-blue-line-flags-from-city-event/ |work=Fox News |date=May 13, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Hennessy |first1=Joe |title=Thin blue line flag voted down by Merriam City Council |url=https://www.kctv5.com/2024/05/14/thin-blue-line-flag-voted-down-by-merriam-city-council/ |work=KCTV |date=May 14, 2024}}</ref>

==Symbols and variations==
The "Thin Blue Line" flag is all black, bearing a single horizontal blue stripe across its center. Variations of the flag, often using various national flags rendered in black and white with a blue line through the center, are seen below. The "[[Blue Lives Matter]]" movement was created in December 2014, after the [[2014 killings of NYPD officers|homicides of NYPD officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu]] in Brooklyn, New York in the wake of the homicides of [[Killing of Eric Garner|Eric Garner]] and [[Shooting of Michael Brown|Michael Brown Jr.]] earlier that year and in the context of the greater [[Black Lives Matter]] movement.<ref name=":1">{{cite book|last1=Dempsey|first1=John S.|last2=Forst|first2=Linda S.|last3=Carter|first3=Steven B.|year=2018|title=An Introduction to Policing|publisher=Cengage Learning|page=34|isbn=9781337558754}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite news |last1=Mueller |first1=Benjamin |last2=Baker |first2=Al |date=2014-12-20 |title=2 N.Y.P.D. Officers Killed in Brooklyn Ambush; Suspect Commits Suicide |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/nyregion/two-police-officers-shot-in-their-patrol-car-in-brooklyn.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141221032947/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/nyregion/two-police-officers-shot-in-their-patrol-car-in-brooklyn.html |archive-date=2014-12-21 |access-date=2021-07-26 |work=[[The New York Times]] |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>

The skull emblem of the [[Punisher]] comics character has become popular within the Blue Lives Matter movement, with many companies producing decals, stickers, and T-shirts featuring the Punisher emblem colored with or alongside the thin blue line.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article134722264.html|title=Chief removes Punisher emblem, 'Blue Lives Matter' from police cars after public reacts|work=Lexington Herald-Ledger|access-date=25 June 2019|archive-date=16 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116232501/https://www.kentucky.com/news/state/article134722264.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":0" />  The creator of the Punisher, [[Gerry Conway]], has criticized this usage, saying that police who use the symbol "are embracing an outlaw mentality" and "it's as offensive as putting a Confederate flag on a government building".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/punisher-creator-gerry-conway-cops-using-the-skull-logo-are-like-people-using-the|title=Punisher Creator Gerry Conway: Cops Using the Skull Logo Are Like People Using the Confederate Flag|work=SyFy Wire|date=8 January 2019|access-date=18 September 2019|archive-date=16 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190116204016/https://www.syfy.com/syfywire/punisher-creator-gerry-conway-cops-using-the-skull-logo-are-like-people-using-the|url-status=dead}}</ref> Conway has also responded by trying to "reclaim the logo" by selling t-shirts adorned with the Punisher logo and Black Lives Matter, with sales going directly to Black Lives Matter-related charities.<ref>{{Citation|title=Punisher Co-Creator Gerry Conway Wants to Reclaim Iconic Skull Logo for Black Lives Matter - IGN|date=15 June 2020|url=https://www.ign.com/articles/punisher-co-creator-gerry-conway-skull-logo-black-lives-matter|language=en|access-date=25 June 2020|archive-date=22 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200622031010/https://www.ign.com/articles/punisher-co-creator-gerry-conway-skull-logo-black-lives-matter|url-status=live}}</ref>

The flag was banned by the [[LAPD]] from being displayed in public settings in January 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |date=23 January 2023 |title=LAPD chief bans public displays of 'thin blue line' flag |url=https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/west/lapd-chief-bans-public-displays-of-thin-blue-line-flag/ |access-date=31 March 2024 |website=NewsNation |language=en-US |archive-date=31 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240331212803/https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/west/lapd-chief-bans-public-displays-of-thin-blue-line-flag/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Variations representing professions other than law enforcement exist, such as the "thin red line" flag, representing [[firefighter]]s,<ref>{{Cite web|last=Rice|first=Briana|title=What do 'Thin Blue Line' and 'Thin Red Line' flags mean?|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/09/15/what-do-thin-blue-line-and-thin-red-line-flags-mean/5805751002/|access-date=30 March 2021|website=[[The Cincinnati Enquirer]]|language=en-US|archive-date=21 April 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210421152844/https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/09/15/what-do-thin-blue-line-and-thin-red-line-flags-mean/5805751002/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|last=Kovach|first=John|date=18 October 2020|title=Firefighters: 'Thin red line' flag stolen off Middletown fire engine|url=https://www.middletownpress.com/middletown/article/Firefighters-Thin-red-line-flag-stolen-off-15656537.php|access-date=30 March 2021|website=[[The Middletown Press]]|language=en-US|archive-date=1 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601193341/https://www.middletownpress.com/middletown/article/Firefighters-Thin-red-line-flag-stolen-off-15656537.php|url-status=live}}</ref> and the "thin green line" representing veterans and active service members of all branches of the US military.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Frequently Asked Questions|url=https://www.thingreenline.com/pages/frequently-asked-questions-faq|access-date=5 July 2024|website=Thin Green Line Foundation|language=en}}</ref>

===National flag variants===
{{more citations needed section|date=January 2023}}

{{gallery|mode=nolines|whitebg=y|height=150
|Thin Blue Line Flag (Australia).svg|[[Australia]]<ref name="krimi">{{cite news|url=https://www.krimi-plzen.cz/a/nasivka-tenka-modra-linie-thin-blue-line/|title=Nášivka "Tenká Modrá Linie" – Thin Blue Line|lang=cs|date=14 January 2020|work=Krimi-Plzeň|access-date=4 September 2020|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213111952/https://www.krimi-plzen.cz/a/nasivka-tenka-modra-linie-thin-blue-line/|url-status=live}}</ref>
|Thin Blue Line Flag (Canada).svg|[[Canada]]<ref name="ctv-blue-line-flag-ca">{{cite web |last1=Arsalides |first1=Mike |title=Controversy surrounds a flag flying at the OPPA Barrie building |url=https://barrie.ctvnews.ca/controversy-surrounds-a-flag-flying-at-the-oppa-barrie-building-1.5041121 |website=CTV News |access-date=10 September 2020 |date=27 July 2020 |archive-date=29 March 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210329022100/https://barrie.ctvnews.ca/controversy-surrounds-a-flag-flying-at-the-oppa-barrie-building-1.5041121 |url-status=live }}</ref>
|Thin Blue Line Flag (New Zealand).svg|8=[[New Zealand]]|9=Thin Blue Line Flag (Finland).svg|10=[[Finland]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.is.fi/kotimaa/art-2000006292101.html|title=Poliisien hihoissa näkyvät kielletyt Suomen liput herättävät kysymyksiä – poliisitarkastaja: "Siihen on puututtu, mutta lopputulos ei ole tyydyttävä"|website=Is|lang=fi|date=31 October 2019|access-date=27 August 2021|archive-date=27 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210827232212/https://www.is.fi/kotimaa/art-2000006292101.html|url-status=live}}</ref>|11=Thin Blue Line Flag (Iceland).svg|12=[[Iceland]]<ref name="mbl.is"/>|13=Thin Blue Line Flag (Switzerland).svg|14=[[Switzerland]]|15=Thin Blue Line Flag (Ukraine).svg|16=[[Ukraine]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://mariupol-police.dn.ua/news/view/4504|title=Маріупольці продовжують підтримувати поліцію: власники підприємства ТОВ «Бетонмікс» у Центральному районі долучилися до руху «Тонка синя лінія» - Маріупольське районне управління поліції|access-date=29 August 2021|archive-date=29 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210829024717/http://mariupol-police.dn.ua/news/view/4504|url-status=live}}</ref>|17=Thin Blue Line Flag (United Kingdom).svg|18=[[United Kingdom]]<ref name="BBC"/>|19=Thin Blue Line Flag (United States).svg|20=[[United States]]<ref name=":0"/>}}

===Other flag variants===

{{more citations needed section|date=January 2023}}
{{gallery|mode=nolines|whitebg=y|height=150
|Thin Blue Line Flag (Hong Kong).svg|[[Hong Kong]]<ref>{{cite tweet|url=https://twitter.com/ginkgogoes/status/1213784219157008384|title=🙄 they're wearing "thin blue line" flags now https://bit.ly/2SUdFfe|date=5 January 2020|user=ginkgogoes|number=1213784219157008384|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111151722/https://twitter.com/ginkgogoes/status/1213784219157008384|archive-date=11 November 2020|url-status=live|author=Murkrow}}</ref>{{Self-published inline|certain=yes|date=January 2023}}
|Thin Blue Line Flag (Texas).svg|[[Texas]]<ref name="krimi"/>
}}

=== Other profession variants<ref>{{Cite web |date=28 August 2022 |title=Other Thin Line flags (U.S.) |url=https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us_tl.html |access-date=4 September 2023 |website=Flags Of The World (FOTW) |archive-date=10 June 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230610012356/https://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/us_tl.html |url-status=live }}</ref> ===
<gallery mode="nolines">
File:Thin Red Line Flag.svg|[[Firefighter|Fire Response]]
File:Thin Green Line Flag.svg|Federal Agents<ref group="lower-alpha">This includes [[Border guard|Border Patrol]], [[Park ranger|Park Rangers]], [[Conservation officer|Game Wardens]] and [[Conservation biology|Conservation Personnel]]</ref>
File:Thin Gold Line Flag.svg|[[Dispatcher|Dispatch]]
File:Thin Camo Line Flag.svg|[[Military personnel|Military Personnel]]<ref group="lower-alpha">Design is adapted by changing the camo pattern to that being sued by the military group.</ref>
File:Thin Orange Line Flag.svg|[[Search and rescue|Search & Rescue]]
File:Thin Silver Line Flag.svg|[[Prison officer|Corrections Officers]]
File:Thin Yellow Line Flag.svg|[[Security guard|Security Personnel]]
File:Thin Red Line for Nurses Flag.svg|[[Nursing]]
File:Thin White Line Flag.svg|[[Emergency medical services|EMS]]
</gallery>

==Appearances and controversy==
[[File:Thin Blue Line at National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.png|thumb|right|A blue laser beam was projected during the 24th annual National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial on 13 May 2012 in Washington, D.C.]]
Critics argue that the "thin blue line" represents an "us versus them" mindset that heightens tensions between officers and citizens and negatively influences police-community interactions by setting police apart from society at large.<ref>{{cite book |first1=Don L. |last1=Kurtz |first2=Alayna |last2=Colburn |chapter=Police Narratives as Allegories that Shape Police Culture and Behaviour |title=The Emerald Handbook of Narrative Criminology |editor1-first=Jennifer |editor1-last=Fleetwood |editor2-first=Lois |editor2-last=Presser |editor3-first=Sveinung |editor3-last=Sandberg |editor4-first=Thomas |editor4-last=Ugelvik |publisher=Emerald Publishing |year=2019 |page=330}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first=David A. |last=Harris |title=Failed Evidence: Why Law Enforcement Resists Science |publisher=New York University Press |year=2012 |page=106}}</ref> It is sometimes used as a symbol of opposition to the [[Black Lives Matter]] movement.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Navratil |first1=Liz |last2=Montemayor |first2=Stephen |last3=Mannix |first3=Andy |title=Chief: Officer meant to use Taser, not firearm, on Daunte Wright |url=https://www.startribune.com/police-chief-officer-meant-to-use-taser-not-firearm-on-daunte-wright-brooklyn-center-shooting/600045076/ |access-date=13 April 2021 |work=Star Tribune |date=13 April 2021 |archive-date=14 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210414172607/https://www.startribune.com/police-chief-officer-meant-to-use-taser-not-firearm-on-daunte-wright-brooklyn-center-shooting/600045076/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine |last=Sharlet |first=Jeff |title=A Flag for Trump's America: The author of The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War explains why 45's arrest isn't the spectacle you think it is |language=en |volume=July 2018 |magazine=Harper's Magazine |url=https://harpers.org/archive/2018/07/a-flag-for-trumps-america/ |access-date=9 July 2023 |issn=0017-789X |archive-date=26 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230426001451/https://harpers.org/archive/2018/07/a-flag-for-trumps-america/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The [[Canadian Anti-Hate Network]] has stated that it often encounters Thin Blue Line and 'back the blue' symbols on social media pages used by hate groups.<ref name="Torstar3">{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2021/05/20/toronto-police-remind-officers-to-stick-to-uniform-after-thin-blue-line-patches-spotted-at-homeless-clearance.html|title=Toronto police remind officers to stick to uniform after 'thin blue line' patches spotted at homeless clearance|last=Lavery|first=Irelyne|publisher=Toronto Star|date=20 May 2021|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526190257/https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2021/05/20/toronto-police-remind-officers-to-stick-to-uniform-after-thin-blue-line-patches-spotted-at-homeless-clearance.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In the USA, white supremacists were documented carrying Thin Blue Line flags alongside the [[Confederate battle flag]] and [[Flag of Nazi Germany|Nazi]] flags at the [[Unite the Right rally|Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia]].<ref name="Manchester">{{cite news|url=https://www.courant.com/community/manchester/hc-news-manchester-thin-blue-line-20210519-wm6y6g3vxvfmzoh4nnxmbg55bm-story.html|title=Manchester police remove Thin Blue Line flag from station|last=Leavenworth|first=Jesse|publisher=Hartford Courant|date=19 May 2021|access-date=20 June 2021|archive-date=22 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622024858/https://www.courant.com/community/manchester/hc-news-manchester-thin-blue-line-20210519-wm6y6g3vxvfmzoh4nnxmbg55bm-story.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.usnews.com/news/best-states/oregon/articles/2017-08-25/courthouse-removes-flag-after-white-supremacists-display-it |title=Courthouse Removes Flag After White Supremacists Display It |date=25 August 2017 |publisher=[[U.S. News & World Report]] }}</ref><ref name = "USAT">{{cite news |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/18/thin-blue-line-what-does-american-flag-wit-flag-maker-condemns-use-white-supremacists-charlottesvill/580694001/ |title='Thin Blue Line': What does an American flag with a blue line mean? |publisher=USA Today |date=18 August 2017 |first1=Sean |last1=Rossman |access-date=6 June 2018 |archive-date=14 January 2019 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20190114195113/https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/08/18/thin-blue-line-what-does-american-flag-wit-flag-maker-condemns-use-white-supremacists-charlottesvill/580694001/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Supporters of the symbol say that it is about paying their respects to law enforcement officers slain in the line of duty, and of officers showing mutual solidarity against attacks by [[Police abolition movement|critics]], criminals and the [[Anti-police sentiment|general public]].<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Channon |first1=Max |last2=O'Reilly |first2=Luke |date=2023-07-02 |title=Met Police 'ban badge that honours officers killed in line of duty' |url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1786643/Met-Police-London-Pride-Thin-Blue-Line |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=[[The Daily Express]] |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Hernandez |first=David |date=2020-07-06 |title=The thin blue line: The history behind the controversial police emblem |url=https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/public-safety/story/2020-07-06/the-thin-blue-line-the-complex-history-and-thoughts-behind-the-police-emblem |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=[[San Diego Union-Tribune]] |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=2023-07-06 |title=Northamptonshire Police chief Nick Adderley offers to pay for thin blue line badges |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-northamptonshire-66118464 |access-date=2024-06-11 |work=[[BBC News]] |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Scarcella |first=Louie |date=2024-06-10 |title=The town of Wethersfield should let the thin blue line flag fly: Letters |url=https://nypost.com/2024/06/10/opinion/the-town-of-wethersfield-should-let-the-thin-blue-line-flag-fly-letters/ |access-date=2024-06-11 |website=[[New York Post]] |language=en-US}}</ref>

In recent years the use and display of the Thin Blue Line symbol has attracted controversy in several communities.

*In [[Chicago]], in November 2016, counter-protesters carried the black and white US flag symbol to show support for police after the [[Mount Greenwood, Chicago#Racial tension|police shooting of Joshua Beal]], in opposition to another group of protesters who felt the shooting was unjust and racially motivated.<ref name="DNA">{{cite news |url=https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20161120/mt-greenwood/three-different-groups-of-protesters-come-face-face-mount-greenwood/ |title=Three Groups of Protesters Come Face To Face in Mount Greenwood |first=Howard |last=Ludwig |date=20 November 2016 |publisher=[[DNAinfo]] |access-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621015611/https://www.dnainfo.com/chicago/20161120/mt-greenwood/three-different-groups-of-protesters-come-face-face-mount-greenwood/ |archive-date=21 June 2018 |url-status=dead  }}</ref>
*In [[Warwick, New York]], the painting of a blue line down a roadway was protested by some citizens as being in opposition to the [[Black Lives Matter]] movement. The town has since painted the line red, white, and blue, the colors of the US flag.<ref name="WRK">{{cite news |url=http://www.recordonline.com/news/20161206/blue-line-causes-friction-in-warwick |title=Blue line causes friction in Warwick |first=Richard J. |last=Bayne |date=6 December 2016 |work=Times Herald-Record |access-date=13 December 2016 |archive-date=10 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161210033904/http://www.recordonline.com/news/20161206/blue-line-causes-friction-in-warwick |url-status=live }}</ref>
*In 2017, [[Multnomah County Courthouse]] in Portland, Oregon, removed the flag after it gained notoriety with the Charlottesville demonstrators.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.policeone.com/chiefs-sheriffs/articles/413901006-Ore-sheriff-removes-Thin-Blue-Line-flag-from-courthouse-break-room/ |title=Ore. sheriff removes 'Thin Blue Line' flag from courthouse break room |date=25 August 2017 |first1=Samantha |last1=Matsumoto |work=The Oregonian |publisher=PoliceOne |access-date=13 August 2018 |archive-date=14 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814001811/https://www.policeone.com/chiefs-sheriffs/articles/413901006-Ore-sheriff-removes-Thin-Blue-Line-flag-from-courthouse-break-room/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
*In July 2019, the "Thin Blue Line" American Flag was put up by residents of [[York, Maine]], as a way to pay tribute to a local police officer who was shot and killed in the line of duty decades earlier. Due to accusations of racism from members of the York Diversity Forum, Charlie Black, the son of fallen State Police Trooper Charles Black subsequently took the flag down.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://bangordailynews.com/2019/07/30/news/york/son-of-slain-maine-state-trooper-says-its-time-to-move-on-after-thin-blue-line-flag-removed/|title=Son of slain Maine state trooper says it's time to move on after Thin Blue Line flag removed|website=Bangor Daily News|date=30 July 2019|language=en-US|access-date=26 August 2019|archive-date=26 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190826041402/https://bangordailynews.com/2019/07/30/news/york/son-of-slain-maine-state-trooper-says-its-time-to-move-on-after-thin-blue-line-flag-removed/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*On 31 May 2020, the Hamilton County Sheriff's Department in [[Cincinnati, Ohio]], flew the blue line flag in place of the American flag in response to the [[George Floyd protests]]. The department tweeted that the original flag had been stolen and the blue line flag flown as a replacement in honor of the [[Cincinnati Police Department]] officer shot during the unrest.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/05/31/hamilton-county-sheriffs-office-flew-thin-blue-line-flag/5304356002/|title=Hamilton County Sheriff's Office Flew Blue Line Flag|last=McKenzie|first=Ian|website=Cincinnati Enquirer|date=31 May 2020|language=en|access-date=31 May 2020|archive-date=1 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200601210221/https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2020/05/31/hamilton-county-sheriffs-office-flew-thin-blue-line-flag/5304356002/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*On 30 July 2020, [[Blue Lives Matter]] flags were removed from [[Hingham, Massachusetts]] fire trucks after days of controversy over whether the flags simply salute police officers or have a more divisive political message. Some townspeople had confused the flag with the genuine "Thin Blue Line" flag.<ref>{{cite news|last=Smith|first=Tovia|title=Thin Blue Line Flags Stir Controversy In Mass. Coastal Community|date=31 July 2020|publisher=[[NPR]]|url=https://www.npr.org/2020/07/31/897615425/thin-blue-line-flags-stir-controversy-in-mass-coastal-community|access-date=31 July 2020|archive-date=1 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200801075839/https://www.npr.org/2020/07/31/897615425/thin-blue-line-flags-stir-controversy-in-mass-coastal-community|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/07/30/metro/thin-blue-line-flags-removed-hingham-fire-trucks-with-help-weymouth-police/|work=The Boston Globe|first=Jeremy C.|last=Fox|title='Thin blue line' flags removed from Hingham fire trucks with help from Weymouth police|date=30 July 2020|access-date=31 July 2020|archive-date=31 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731113748/https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/07/30/metro/thin-blue-line-flags-removed-hingham-fire-trucks-with-help-weymouth-police/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*In May 2021, the [[Edmonton Police Association]] drew criticism for flying a thin blue line flag atop their building. In response, a representative for the police association stated that they didn't "know where and how the symbolism of the blue line flag turned into being considered a racist or hateful type of thing". The police association has refused to remove the symbol.<ref>{{cite news|last=Junker|first=Anna|title=Edmonton Police Association says controversial thin blue line flag a show of solidarity|date=27 May 2021|publisher=[[Edmonton Journal]]|url=https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/edmonton-police-association-says-thin-blue-line-flag-a-show-of-solidarity|access-date=27 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526233445/https://edmontonjournal.com/news/local-news/edmonton-police-association-says-thin-blue-line-flag-a-show-of-solidarity|url-status=live}}</ref>
*In August 2021 the village board of [[Mount Prospect, Illinois]], a suburb of Chicago, voted to remove the thin blue line flag patch from police officers' uniforms. The police chief had stated that the symbol was intended as "a memorial to police officers killed serving their community". However one trustee noted that "this patch is considered racist by many regardless of what the intent is".<ref>{{cite news |first=Eric |last=DeGrechie |date=11 August 2021 |url=https://patch.com/illinois/arlingtonheights/thin-blue-line-flags-removed-mount-prospect-police-uniforms |title=Thin Blue Line Flags Removed from Mount Prospect Police Uniforms |work=Arlington Heights Patch |access-date=5 December 2021 |archive-date=5 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211205202701/https://patch.com/illinois/arlingtonheights/thin-blue-line-flags-removed-mount-prospect-police-uniforms |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Injunctions against use==

Since 2015, several jurisdictions have issued injunctions against the use of Thin Blue Line imagery on police uniforms or in other official capacities by emergency services.

===Canada===
*On 9 October 2020, the [[Royal Canadian Mounted Police]] (RCMP) issued a directive banning the wearing or displaying of symbols related to the Thin Blue Line by officers who are on duty. This directive was opposed by the National Police Federation, the [[police union]] that represents RCMP officers. In retaliation, the union ordered Thin Blue Line flags for all of its officers to wear against RCMP orders.<ref name="Global1">{{cite news|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/7392282/rcmp-directive-thin-blue-line/|title=RCMP directive eliminates wearing of 'thin blue line' patch while on duty|last=Campbell|first=Morganne|publisher=Global News|date=11 October 2020|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526190255/https://globalnews.ca/news/7392282/rcmp-directive-thin-blue-line/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Torstar1">{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/09/rcmp-officers-told-not-to-wear-symbol-depicting-thin-blue-line.html|title=RCMP officers told not to wear symbol depicting 'thin blue line'|last=Quan|first=Douglas|publisher=Toronto Star|date=9 October 2020|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526190255/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/09/rcmp-officers-told-not-to-wear-symbol-depicting-thin-blue-line.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Torstar2">{{cite news|url=https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/12/rcmp-union-pushes-back-against-ban-on-thin-blue-line-symbol-says-it-has-ordered-custom-patches.html|title=RCMP union pushes back against ban on 'thin blue line' symbol, says it has ordered custom patches|last=Quan|first=Douglas|publisher=Toronto Star|date=12 October 2020|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526190255/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/10/12/rcmp-union-pushes-back-against-ban-on-thin-blue-line-symbol-says-it-has-ordered-custom-patches.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="HuffPoCan">{{cite news|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/rcmp-thin-blue-line_ca_5f8609b9c5b6f53fff065118|title=RCMP Union Tells Officers To Proudly Wear Controversial 'Thin Blue Line' Symbol|last=Beattie|first=Samantha|publisher=Huffington Post Canada|date=13 October 2020|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=1 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601233033/https://www.huffingtonpost.ca/entry/rcmp-thin-blue-line_ca_5f8609b9c5b6f53fff065118|url-status=live}}</ref> On 5 June 2021, RCMP officers engaged in removing [[Fairy Creek old-growth logging protests|protesters at Fairy Creek]] were criticized for wearing 'Thin Blue Line' patches on their uniforms despite the October 2020 directive forbidding its use.<ref name="CTVvic">{{cite news|url=https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/mobile/mounties-criticized-for-wearing-thin-blue-line-patches-at-b-c-old-growth-logging-protests-1.5457025|title=Mounties criticized for wearing 'thin blue line' patches at B.C. old-growth logging protests|last=Coyne|first=Todd|publisher=CTV|date=5 June 2021|access-date=1 July 2022|archive-date=1 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220701135555/https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/mobile/mounties-criticized-for-wearing-thin-blue-line-patches-at-b-c-old-growth-logging-protests-1.5457025|url-status=live}}</ref>
*In October 2020, shortly after the RCMP directive, the [[Victoria Police Department]] in British Columbia banned Thin Blue Line flags from officers' uniforms. The police force in the neighbouring community of [[Saanich, British Columbia]], also confirmed their injunction against police officers applying personalized decorations like the Thin Blue Line flag to their approved uniform.<ref name="CHEK">{{cite news|url=https://www.cheknews.ca/vicpd-rcmp-ban-thin-blue-line-patches-from-uniforms-711566/|title=VicPD, RCMP ban thin blue line patches from uniforms|last=Lawrence|first=April|publisher=CHEK News|date=21 October 2020|access-date=7 June 2021|archive-date=7 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210607144110/https://www.cheknews.ca/vicpd-rcmp-ban-thin-blue-line-patches-from-uniforms-711566/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*In February 2021, the [[City of Ottawa]]'s police chief implemented uniform standards that would see any alterations, including the controversial "thin blue line" patch, banned from officers' on-the-job attire.<ref name="Global2">{{cite news|url=https://globalnews.ca/news/7656019/ottawa-police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-patch/|title=Ottawa police chief bans officers from wearing 'thin blue line', other patches|last=Lord|first=Craig|publisher=Global News|date=22 February 2021|access-date=26 May 2021|archive-date=26 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210526190256/https://globalnews.ca/news/7656019/ottawa-police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-patch/|url-status=live}}</ref>
*In May 2021, [[Toronto Police Service|Toronto police officers]] were photographed wearing the thin blue line patches on their uniforms while clearing out a homeless encampment at [[Lamport Stadium]]. The police officers were reminded that the symbol was not approved by the service's clothing committee or the chief of police. This followed a similar incident in 2020 when a Toronto police officer was ordered to immediately remove a patch featuring a version of the thin blue line superimposed over the black skull symbol used by the [[Punisher#In politics and popular culture|Punisher]] comic book character.<ref name="Torstar3" />

===Iceland===
*In October 2020, a photo of an Icelandic police officer was the subject of controversy among the population. In the photo, the officer was wearing a [[Vinland flag]] as well as the Thin Blue Line flag overlaid on the [[Icelandic flag]].<ref name="mbl.is">{{Cite web|url=https://www.mbl.is/frettir/innlent/2020/10/21/stal_laug_og_rauf_sottkvi/|title=Stal, laug og rauf sóttkví|language=Icelandic|date=21 October 2020|access-date=5 July 2021|publisher=[[Morgunblaðið]]|archive-date=24 May 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210524222005/https://www.mbl.is/frettir/innlent/2020/10/21/stal_laug_og_rauf_sottkvi/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://grapevine.is/news/2020/10/21/flags-on-police-uniform-raise-questions-capital-area-police-respond/|title=Flags On Police Uniform Raise Questions; Capital Area Police Respond|date=21 October 2020|access-date=5 July 2021|first=Andie|last=Sophia Fontaine|publisher=[[The Reykjavík Grapevine]]|archive-date=28 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210628195243/https://grapevine.is/news/2020/10/21/flags-on-police-uniform-raise-questions-capital-area-police-respond/|url-status=live}}</ref> On 12 May 2021, [[Minister of Justice]] [[Áslaug Arna Sigurbjörnsdóttir]] issued new regulations that, in part, banned the adornment of these symbols on official police uniform.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.stjornartidindi.is/Advert.aspx?recordID=6cae8211-f333-40cf-bbd1-1712b5d8f225|title=REGLUGERÐ um einkennisfatnað lögreglunnar|language=Icelandic|publisher=Stjórnartíðindi|date=12 May 2021|access-date=5 July 2021|archive-date=9 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709184759/https://www.stjornartidindi.is/Advert.aspx?recordID=6cae8211-f333-40cf-bbd1-1712b5d8f225|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://grapevine.is/news/2021/06/15/justice-minister-bans-police-from-wearing-racist-imagery/|title=Justice Minister Bans Police From Wearing Racist Imagery|date=15 June 2021|access-date=5 July 2021|first=Andie|last=Sophia Fontaine|publisher=[[The Reykjavík Grapevine]]|archive-date=28 June 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210628113104/https://grapevine.is/news/2021/06/15/justice-minister-bans-police-from-wearing-racist-imagery/|url-status=live}}</ref>

===United Kingdom===

* In 2015, a number of [[Sussex Police]] officers were instructed by their supervisors to remove a badge from their uniforms that consisted of a blue line across a [[Union Jack]] on the grounds that it was not part of their official uniform and could be seen as a political statement relating to cutbacks in police budgets.<ref name= "BBC">{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-sussex-31497559|title=Sussex PC told to remove union jack police charity badge|publisher=BBC News|date=17 February 2015|access-date=21 July 2018|archive-date=21 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180621213255/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-sussex-31497559|url-status=live}}</ref>

===United States===
*In 2017, following an incident in [[Riviera Beach, Florida]], where a group of police officers flew thin blue line flags on their personal vehicles, an order was issued by their captain to remove the flags.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://cbs12.com/news/local/thin-blue-line-flag-controversy |title=Thin Blue Line Flag controversy |last=Magnoli |first=Mike |publisher=[[WPEC]] |date=14 March 2017 |access-date=1 January 2018 |archive-date=1 January 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180101135849/http://cbs12.com/news/local/thin-blue-line-flag-controversy |url-status=live }}</ref>
*In May 2020, officers of the [[San Francisco Police Department]] (SFPD) were forbidden from wearing [[Face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic|non-medical face masks]] with "Thin Blue Line" symbols on the job. The SFPD chief of police, Bill Scott, stated that this decision was made "in consideration of concerns some community members have expressed that 'thin blue line' symbolism on some of our officers' face masks may be perceived as divisive or disrespectful".<ref>{{Cite web|title=San Francisco police chief nixes officers' 'Thin Blue Line' coronavirus masks|url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/sf-police-chief-thin-blue-line-coronavirus-masks-rejected|last=Gearty|first=Robert|date=3 May 2020|website=Fox News|language=en-US|access-date=31 May 2020|archive-date=1 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200601051443/https://www.foxnews.com/us/sf-police-chief-thin-blue-line-coronavirus-masks-rejected|url-status=live}}</ref>{{bsn|date=May 2025}}
*On 1 June 2020, the [[Middletown, Connecticut]], Police Chief, William McKenna, made a joint statement along with the mayor of the city, Ben Florsheim, stating that they would be removing the flag from public view at the Middletown Police Department. A change.org petition that garnered over 1,300 signatures for the flags to be removed in wake of the [[murder of George Floyd]] influenced the city to make the choice.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://patch.com/connecticut/middletown-ct/thin-blue-line-flags-taken-down-middletown-police-department |work=Patch |title='Thin Blue Line' Flags Taken Down At Middletown Police Department |first=Vincent |last=Salzo |date=2 June 2020 |access-date=4 June 2020 |archive-date=7 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200707025255/https://patch.com/connecticut/middletown-ct/thin-blue-line-flags-taken-down-middletown-police-department |url-status=live }}</ref>
* In November 2020, the chief of the [[University of Wisconsin-Madison]] Police Department banned use of the flag by officers while on duty on the grounds that the symbol had become associated with 'extremists'.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Griffith|first=Janelle|date=29 January 2021|title=Police chief bans 'Thin Blue Line' imagery, says it's been 'co-opted' by extremists|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-imagery-says-it-s-n1256217|access-date=30 March 2021|website=[[NBC News]]|language=en|archive-date=31 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210331134041/https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/police-chief-bans-thin-blue-line-imagery-says-it-s-n1256217|url-status=live}}</ref> In a statement on 15 January 2021, Chief Roman said that extremists had "visibly co-opted the thin blue line flag".<ref>{{Cite web|date=26 January 2021|title=Thin Blue Line Update|url=https://uwpd.wisc.edu/thin-blue-line-update/|access-date=30 March 2021|website=UW–Madison Police Department|language=en-US|archive-date=6 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210306112131/https://uwpd.wisc.edu/thin-blue-line-update/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* In May 2021, the towns of [[Manchester, Connecticut|Manchester]], [[South Windsor, Connecticut|South Windsor]], [[Middletown, Connecticut|Middletown]], and [[Willimantic, Connecticut|Willimantic]], all in [[Connecticut]], banned or removed Thin Blue Line flags from their towns. In South Windsor, the flags were removed after the chief of police expressed concerns about displaying the flag. In Manchester, the flags were banned under a new city injunction against banners representing "a particular religious movement or creed," political party flags and flags "that enable violence, discrimination, prejudice, or racism."<ref name="Manchester" />
* In January 2023, the [[Los Angeles Police Department]] banned the use of the flag.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Parks |first=Kristine |date=13 January 2023 |title=LAPD bans Thin Blue Line flag over complaint it represents 'racist, bigoted views' |url=https://www.foxnews.com/media/lapd-bans-thin-blue-line-complaint-represents-violent-extremist-views |access-date=14 January 2023 |website=Fox News |language=en-US |archive-date=13 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230113235127/https://www.foxnews.com/media/lapd-bans-thin-blue-line-complaint-represents-violent-extremist-views |url-status=live }}</ref>{{bsn|date=May 2025}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Law}}
*''[[The Thin Blue Lie]]'', a television film about police brutality in Philadelphia under the mayorship of [[Frank Rizzo]]
* [[Militarization of police]]
* [[Blue flu]]

== Notes ==
{{reflist|group=lower-alpha}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Thin blue line, the}}
[[Category:Law enforcement in the United States]]
[[Category:Law enforcement in Canada]]
[[Category:Law enforcement in the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Law enforcement]]
[[Category:Flag controversies in the United States]]