A Police Officer Killed in Baton Rouge Wrote This Beautiful Plea for Unity Just Days Before His Death

Courtesy of Trenisha Jackson via AP

Following a shooting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, that left three police officers dead and another three wounded, a Facebook post written by slain officer Montrell Jackson just days prior to the attack has gone viral, revealing Jackson's emotional plea for greater unity between civilians and law enforcement officials.

On Sunday morning, a gunman opened fire in Baton Rouge in an ambush on the city's police force that comes on the heels of several weeks of violence. Earlier this month, the killings of Alton Sterling in Baton Rouge and Philando Castile in St. Paul, Minnesota—both at the hands of officers—escalated existing tensions between law enforcement and civilians and led to countrywide protests—one of which turned deadly, when a sniper opened fire on police during Black Lives Matter demonstration in Dallas, Texas.

Montrell Jackson, a 10-year-veteran of the Baton Rouge police force, was one of the officers killed in Sunday's attack. On July 8, just nine days before his death, Jackson shared a gut-wrenching post to his Facebook page to express his own heartbreak over the deaths of Sterling, Castile, and the Dallas officers, as well as the ongoing turmoil plaguing the nation.

"I’m tired physically and emotionally," Jackson wrote. "I swear to God I love this city but I wonder if this city loves me. In uniform I get nasty hateful looks and out of uniform some consider me a threat. I’ve experienced so much in my short life and these last 3 days have tested me to the core."

He continued, saying, "These are trying times. Please don’t let hate infect your heart. This city MUST and WILL get better."

Jackson leaves behind a wife and four-month-old son. His brother, Kendrick Pitts, told NPR on Sunday that Jackson "loved his job" and would want to see an end to the violence.

"He would want the world to be a better place," Pitts said. "Let's put an end to all this madness, and everybody come together."

Source: http://www.glamour.com/story/a-police-officer-killed-in-baton-rouge-wrote-this-beautiful-plea-for-unity-just-days-before-his-death