This painting of The Thin Blue Line is Craig's tribute to fallen police officers. The American Flag represents the people of the United States who love her. The black flag with the thin blue line honors those who gave up their lives. The names of those who died in the 18 months leading up to and overlapping the 2020 summer riots are written in the background of the artwork. We heard the story the media repeated daily, but the sacrifices of these officers, their families, and communities were never told.
The rips on the left of the flag represent the political and social pressures trying to break down the civic peace and cause social unrest. The threads represent the cities where rioters burned down businesses in their own communities, and the undeserved losses to those who made their living in those cities. The mainstream news covered the riots in an often-positive light and grossly failed to cover the sacrifices of those who tried to protect innocent residents, employees, and business owners.
This painting is a reminder to us all that men and women died protecting our right to live as free people. Shame on those of us who thought that gave us a green light to destroy other people’s rights to that same freedom.
NOTE: Craig, the creator of The Thin Blue Line Flag did so to honor all law enforcement. The stars represented the citizens of this country who stand for justice and order. The darkness represented anarchy and chaos. There was no political agenda in its creation.