Fraternal Order Of Police
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The National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) is a
fraternal organization A fraternity (; whence, " brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular aims. Fraternity in the Western conce ...
consisting of sworn
law enforcement officer A law enforcement officer (LEO), or police officer or peace officer in North American English, is a public-sector or private-sector employee whose duties primarily involve the enforcement of laws, protecting life & property, keeping the peace, ...
s in the United States. It reports a membership of over 355,000 members organized in 2,100 local chapters (lodges),
state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...
lodges, and the national Grand Lodge. The organization attempts to improve the working conditions of law enforcement officers and the safety of those they serve through education, legislation, information, community involvement, and employee representation.Frequently Asked Questions
." Fraternal Order of Police. Retrieved June 19, 2020.
FOP subordinate lodges may be
police union A police union is a trade union for Police officer, police officers. Police unions formed later than most other occupations, reflecting both a conservative tendency and relatively superior working conditions. The first police unions Police union#Un ...
s and/or fraternal organizations, as the FOP has both Labor Lodges and Fraternal Lodges, and describes itself as a "full service member representation organization." It lobbies
Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
and regulatory agencies on behalf of law enforcement officers, provides labor representation, promotes legal defense for officers, and offers resources such as "legal research."


History

The Fraternal Order of Police was founded in 1915 by two
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
, patrol officers, Martin Toole and Delbert Nagle. They and 21 other members of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police met on May 14, 1915, establishing the first local of the Fraternal Order of Police, Fort Pitt Lodge #1.History
." Fraternal Order of Police.
The FOP official history states that the founders decided to not use the term "union" because of "the anti-union sentiment of the time," but nevertheless acted as a union, telling Pittsburgh mayor Joseph G. Armstrong that the FOP would "bring our grievances before the Mayor or Council and have many things adjusted that we are unable to present in any other way...we could get many things through our legislature that our Council will not, or cannot give us." In 1918, it was decided that the Order should become a national organization. The Order's constitution stated that "Race, Creed or Color shall be no bar". The constitution also had a no strike pledge, but this has not been enforced since 1967 when FOP police in
Youngstown, Ohio Youngstown is a city in Mahoning County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Ohio, 11th-most populous city in Ohio with a population of 60,068 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Mahoning ...
refused to work during a salary dispute. In 1974 and 1975 the FOP stated that it would take no action against members who violated the anti-strike clause until all efforts were exhausted on the local and state level. During the 1960s the FOP opposed the creation of police review boards, spearheaded by Robert F. Kennedy, at one point describing them as a "sinister movement against law enforcement". The FOP also clashed with the
American Civil Liberties Union The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit civil rights organization founded in 1920. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The budget of the ACLU in 2024 was $383 million. T ...
(ACLU) on the issue of
police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or Public order policing, a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, b ...
, seeing it as a "liberal attempt to discredit law enforcement". The Order was "heartened by
Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
's emphasis on law and order", though it claimed to remain strictly apolitical.


Emblem and motto

The Fraternal Order of Police emblem is a five-pointed star. According to the FOP: When adopted, the motto was believed to be
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
and assumed to mean "Fairness, Justice, Equality" or "Justice, Friendship, Equality". Actually, the motto is a grammatically impossible and hardly translatable sequence of Latin words; the current interpretation is the best that could be made of it. In the center of the star is the
coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...
of
Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...
, itself based on William Pitt's own coat of arms.


Organization and membership

The FOP
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...
and
bylaw A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authority. The higher authority, generally a legislature or some other ...
s provide that active membership is open to "any regularly appointed or elected and full-time employed law enforcement officer of the United States, any state or political subdivision thereof, or any agency may be eligible for membership" and that "each state and subordinate lodge shall be the judge of its membership." Local lodges often have provisions for retired law enforcement officers.How to Join
." Fraternal Order of Police.
The subordinate lodges are supported by state lodges which are subordinate to the Grand Lodge. The Grand Lodge is the national structure of the order.Schmidt p.265 In 1978, the Order had 138,472 members, 1,250 lodges and 34 state structures. In the late 1970s, the Order's headquarters were located in
Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
. The national organization has three offices: the Labor Services Division in
Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...
, the Steve Young Law Enforcement Legislative Advocacy Center in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, and the Grand Lodge "Atnip-Orms Center" National Headquarters in
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
.Contact Us
." Fraternal Order of Police.


Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary

The Fraternal Order of Police Auxiliary (FOPA) is the auxiliary organization of FOP for family members of FOP members. It was formed by a group of wives of Pittsburgh police officers in 1920, and Kathryn M. Milton became its first national president, in 1941 as the Fraternal Order of Police Ladies Auxiliary. It reports over 2,000 members in 140 Auxiliaries in 25 states. In 1985, males older than 18 were admitted for the first time; in 1987, the current name was adopted, dropping the term "Ladies."Auxiliary
." Fraternal Order of Police.


Fraternal Order of Police Associates

The Fraternal Order of Police Associates (FOPA) is a civilian affiliate organization that is made up of FOP supporters not eligible for membership. Its members include friends and family of members, businesspeople, professionals, and other citizens. It is a
501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...
tax-exempt Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
organization.Fraternal Order of Police Associates
." Fraternal Order of Police.


Political advocacy

Passed legislation supported by FOP includes the
Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act The Law Enforcement Officers Safety Act (LEOSA) is a Law of the United States, United States federal law, enacted in 2004, that allows two classes of persons—the "qualified Police officer, law enforcement officer" and the "qualified retired or ...
, Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act, and HELPS Retirees Act. Pending legislation that FOP lobbies for includes the
Social Security Fairness Act The Social Security Fairness Act is a United States law that repealed the Social Security Government Pension Offset and Windfall Elimination Provision. The bill passed the House in November 2024 and then passed the Senate in December. It was s ...
, the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2007, and the State and Local Law Enforcement Officers' Discipline, Accountability and Due Process Act. The FOP distributes questionnaires for candidates for U.S. president and Congress asking them about their views on issues relating to police officers.Congressional Candidate Questionnaire: Model Questionnaire for use by State and Local Lodges
." Fraternal Order of Police.
Fraternal Order of Police Presidential Questionnaire: John McCain Response
." Fraternal Order of Police.
Fraternal Order of Police Presidential Questionnaire: Barack Obama Response
." Fraternal Order of Police.
FOP has the following issue positions: *Supports the Social Security Fairness Act,Social Security Issues
." Fraternal Order of Police.
which would repeal the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and the Government Pension Offset (GPO) in current law.H.R. 82: Social Security Fairness Act of 2007
." GovTrack.
H.R. 82: Social Security Fairness Act of 2007
." GovTrack.
*Supports the recommendations of the
President's Commission To Strengthen Social Security Executive orders issued by President of the United States, presidents of the United States to help officers and agencies of the executive branch manage operations within the community. At the Federal government of the United States, federal lev ...
to privatize Social Security, and opposes "mandating participation in the Social Security system for either current or newly hired state and local government employees that do not currently participate in Social Security. *Supports "minimal
collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and labour rights, rights for ...
rights for public safety employees," including law enforcement officers and firefighters, and supports the Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2007.H.R. 980: Public Safety Employer-Employee Cooperation Act of 2007
." GovTrack.
*Supports
due process Due process of law is application by the state of all legal rules and principles pertaining to a case so all legal rights that are owed to a person are respected. Due process balances the power of law of the land and protects the individual p ...
rights of law enforcement officers in non-criminal administrative proceedings and supports the State and Local Law Enforcement Discipline, Accountability and Due Process Act.H.R. 688: State and Local Law Enforcement Discipline, Accountability, and Due Process Act of 2007
." GovTrack.
S. 449: State and Local Law Enforcement Discipline, Accountability, and Due Process Act of 2007
." GovTrack.
*Supports the Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act, which would expand the definition of "law enforcement officer" under the
Civil Service Retirement System The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) is a public pension fund organized in 1920 that has provided retirement, disability, and survivor benefits for most civilian employees in the United States federal government. Upon the creation of a new ...
and the
Federal Employees Retirement System The Federal Employees' Retirement System (FERS) is the retirement system for employees within the United States civil service. FERS became effective January 1, 1987, to replace the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and to conform federal r ...
to include all U.S. federal police officers, as well as Customs and Immigration Inspectors.H.R. 1073: Law Enforcement Officers Equity Act
." GovTrack.
S. 1354: Law Enforcement Officers Retirement Equity Act
." GovTrack.
*Supports the REAL ID Act. *In response to the 2014 killings of NYPD officers, then President Chuck Canterbury asked Congress to consider making crimes against police officers fall under the category of hate crimes. In 2008, the president of the Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 53, Eddison Ricketts, wrote Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel that the union supported him. On September 16, 2016, the FOP endorsed Republican Party candidate
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
for U.S. president. This endorsement was opposed by Blacks in Law Enforcement of America for not reflecting the will of the membership. It endorsed Trump again on September 4, 2020. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the FOP vehemently opposed vaccine requirements for police. COVID-19 was the top killer of police officers in 2020 and 2021. On September 6, 2024, The FOP officially endorsed Donald Trump's 2024 presidential campaign. This marks the third time the police union has backed Trump. One of President Trump's first decisions when he returned to office was to grant blanket clemency to more than 1,500 people convicted for their role in the
January 6 Events Pre-1600 * 1066 – Following the death of Edward the Confessor on the previous day, the Witan meets to confirm Harold Godwinson as the new King of England; Harold is crowned the same day, sparking a succession crisis that will ...
attack on the U.S. Capitol. The FOP criticized the move, saying it "sends a dangerous message."


Boycotts

The National Fraternal Order of Police has called for
boycott A boycott is an act of nonviolent resistance, nonviolent, voluntary abstention from a product, person, organisation, or country as an expression of protest. It is usually for Morality, moral, society, social, politics, political, or Environmenta ...
s of various individuals and organizations throughout its history. In August 1999, the Fraternal Order of Police called for a boycott against all individuals and organizations that support Mumia Abu-Jamal, a journalist who was convicted of killing a Philadelphia police officer in 1981. FOP also called for a boycott of the
Beastie Boys The Beastie Boys were an American Hip-hop, hip hop and Rap rock, rap rock group formed in New York City in 1979. They were composed of Ad-Rock, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar), Adam Yauch, Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Mike D, ...
and
Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to Rage) was an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1991. It consisted of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim ...
for their support of Abu-Jamal. In August 2007, FOP called for a boycott of
eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...
for selling police equipment. In 2015, the Fraternal Order of Police called for a boycott of
Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American filmmaker, actor, and author. Quentin Tarantino filmography, His films are characterized by graphic violence, extended dialogue often featuring much profanity, and references to ...
's films following his comments against police brutality at a protest in New York. The boycott of Tarantino was joined by the Border Patrol, as well as police unions in California, Philadelphia, New York, and New Jersey. After athletic company Nike aired an ad featuring former NFL player
Colin Kaepernick Colin Rand Kaepernick ( ; born November 3, 1987) is an American civil rights activist and former professional football quarterback. He played six seasons for the San Francisco 49ers in the National Football League (NFL). In 2016, he gained na ...
in 2018, FOP condemned it and called it an insult. Fraternal Order of Police president Chuck Canterbury said Kaepernick's views were "uninformed and inflammatory" but declined to call for a boycott, saying that "in our experience, boycotts and similar exercises do not succeed and often serve only to enrich the company." Aside from the national organization, many local police unions have separately called for boycotts.


Data breach

In January 2016, the site was hacked and files released to a
dark web The dark web is the World Wide Web content that exists on darknets ( overlay networks) that use the Internet but require specific software, configurations, or authorization to access. Through the dark web, private computer networks can communica ...
activist known as
Cthulhu Cthulhu is a fictional cosmic entity created by writer H. P. Lovecraft. It was introduced in his short story "The Call of Cthulhu", published by the American pulp magazine ''Weird Tales'' in 1928. Considered a Great Old One within the pantheon ...
.


Controversies

In 1991, the FOP was under scrutiny from the public in part because of the
Rodney King Rodney Glen King (April 2, 1965June 17, 2012) was a Black American victim of police brutality. On March 3, 1991, he was severely beaten by Police officer, officers of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) during his arrest after a high spe ...
incident. Dewey Stokes, the FOP president at the time, contextualized the incident by saying, "You have to put things in proper perspective. ..These are not common occurrences. They are the result of stress on the job, emphasis of the system on the criminal and not the victim, and the media's exploitation of the negatives of law enforcement." The human rights group
Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says that it has more than ten million members a ...
has criticized the Fraternal Order of Police in Philadelphia for their vocal support of the
death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty and formerly called judicial homicide, is the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for actual or supposed misconduct. The sentence ordering that an offender be punished in s ...
in the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal. Then New York mayor
Michael Bloomberg Michael Rubens Bloomberg (born February 14, 1942) is an American businessman and politician. He is the majority owner and co-founder of Bloomberg L.P., and was its CEO from 1981 to 2001 and again from 2014 to 2023. He served as the 108th mayo ...
has called the FOP a "fringe organization" for opposing his efforts to repeal the Tiahrt Amendment. On September 18, 2009, ''
The Providence Journal ''The Providence Journal'', colloquially known as the ''ProJo'', is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, the largest newspaper in Rhode Island, US. The newspaper was first published in 1829. The newspaper had won four ...
'' reported the Fraternal Order of Police representing several Rhode Island police departments had solicited donations from city massage parlors or "spas". Watchdog groups have claimed that these massage parlors are fronts for prostitution. On August 27, 2017, as the FOP was holding its annual conference at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee, protesters compared the FOP to the
Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...
by putting up banners on interstate overpasses, one of which read, "Grand Wizards to Grand Lodges. White Supremacy By Another Name". In June 2018, Fraternal Order of Police Tri-County Lodge #3 in South Carolina objected to the inclusion of award-winning novel '' The Hate U Give'' by Angie Thomas, and '' All American Boys'' by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely in a high school summer reading list, because of their depictions of violence by police officers. The
National Coalition Against Censorship The National Coalition Against Censorship (NCAC), founded in 1974, is an alliance of 50 American non-profit organizations, including literary, artistic, religious, educational, professional, labor, and civil liberties groups. NCAC is a New York–b ...
offered the high school support, while prominent authors such as Hari Kunzru and
Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (; born Neil Richard Gaiman; 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, audio theatre, and screenplays. His works include the comic series ''The Sandman (comic book), The Sandma ...
pointed out the alarming nature of police officers trying to police what children read. After the May 2020
murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...
in Minneapolis Police custody, the FOP said, in part: "...police officers should at all times render aid to those who need it... need to treat all of our citizens with respect and understanding and should be held to the very highest standards for their conduct..." In June 2020, the Fraternal Order of Police's
Brevard County, Florida Brevard County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Florida. It is on the Atlantic coast of eastern Central Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county s ...
chapter offered on Facebook to recruit police officers from forces involved in police brutality controversies from Buffalo,
Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...
, and
Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...
. The Brevard County sheriff denounced the remarks. In October 2020, the FOP posted a photo to Twitter and Facebook of a policewoman holding a toddler, claiming he had been found wandering the streets of Philadelphia amid the protests over the killing of Walter Wallace. The toddler had in fact been pulled from the back of a vehicle unrelated to the protests after the police had surrounded it and violently arrested his mother and another passenger without probable cause. The posts were later deleted. On April 15, 2021, the same day
Chicago Police Department The Chicago Police Department (CPD) is the primary law enforcement agency of the city of Chicago, Illinois, United States, under the jurisdiction of the Chicago City Council. It is the second-largest Law enforcement in the United States#Local, ...
body camera footage of the Adam Toledo shooting was released, John Catanzara, president of Lodge 7 Chicago of the Fraternal Order of Police, said the officer was justified in his actions. "He was 100% right," Catanzara said. "The offender still turned with a gun in his hand." This claim is heavily disputed as the video appears to show Toledo turning toward the officer and raising both hands with nothing in them when he was shot and killed. On August 13, 2023,
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
released '' Telemarketers'', a 3-part limited documentary series exploring the controversial telemarketing and fundraising practices of various state and local lodges of The Fraternal Order of Police nationwide. The series and investigation stars former heroin addict and legendary telemarketer Patrick J Pespas, and graffiti artist turned filmmaker Sam Lipman-Stern. On September 6, 2024, FOP officially endorsed Donald Trump for the 2024 US Presidential Election. This endorsement was criticized as some people felt Trump was responsible for the
January 6 United States Capitol attack On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of Donald Trump, President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources: * * * * * * * * * * * * * two months afte ...
and was also found guilty of falsifying business records. More than 60 other police officials endorsed Harris. On January 21, 2025, FOP made an official statement denouncing Trump for the Pardon of January 6 United States Capitol attack defendants.https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/massive-police-union-that-endorsed-trump-slams-jan-6-pardons/ar-AA1xEdrV?ocid=winp2fptaskbar&cvid=b7f39c29d1114507cb9ab8ce54decd04&ei=22


See also

* '' Fraternal Order of Police v. City of Newark'' * Peace Officers Memorial Day * Steve Young Memorial Scholarship Program * ''Telemarketers''—Documentary series on HBO


References


External links


Grand Lodge, Fraternal Order of PoliceTri-County South Carolina Lodge #3, Fraternal Order of PoliceSteve Young Law Enforcement Legislative Advocacy Center
(Legislative lobby) {{Authority control 1915 establishments in Pennsylvania Fraternal orders Law enforcement non-governmental organizations in the United States Trade unions established in 1915 Police unions in the United States