Lee County NAACP honors law enforcement with vigil

The Lee County NAACP held a candlelight vigil to support law enforcement in the wake of a violent streak against officers recently.

In New York City, two police officers died after a shooting in Harlem.

More recently, two officers were shot on Wednesday in Ferguson.

Even though the Lee County NAACP has issues with law enforcement, NAACP President James Muwakkil said violence is never the right way to resolve them.

The goal of the vigil was to show law enforcement they are appreciated for their daily sacrifice.

Antonette Gilmore said she participated because she wanted to show her support.

“I haven’t seen it done in a long time, but it shows me unity,” said Antonette Gilmore, of Fort Myers. “We do need our police officers to support us and come together and unite with everyone, to make everything possible.”

The vigil was meant to show solidarity between law enforcement and the people they protect.

“We want to make sure that we protect them as well,” Muwakkil said of law enforcement. “And that’s why it was important that we say that we do not support any violence whatsoever against our law enforcement.”

Fort Myers police Lt. Shawn Yates appreciated the gesture.

He said so does the rest of the department.

“There are times where it is very hazardous and to know that there is community members out there that support us and doing that when we go out and take those risks of life or not coming home, it means a lot to the officers that they know the community is behind them when they are out there doing that for them,” Yates said.