By Police1 Staff
HOUSTON — With protests over Trump’s presidency increasing in frequency, police working the Super Bowl this Sunday are on high alert. Some of them say the lack of information about one executive order Trump signed on Friday is further complicating matters.
Like many agencies across the nation, Trump’s order barring citizens of seven Muslim-majority nations from entering the U.S. came as a surprise to those preparing security for the sporting event.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez told USA Today the timing of the rollout was “problematic,” given the order is likely to spur protests at the Super Bowl.
“...because of the heightened emotion, you know, the visceral reaction at first notice of this, so it’s that recency effect, it just occurred,” Gonzalez said. “Obviously we’re trying to roll out some of our (security) measures. But that said, we’re anticipating anything anytime you have such a large-scale event.”
Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo expressed concern as well. Acevedo said more information ahead of time about what the order entailed would have helped their departments plan.
“I’m not worried about it because we’re ready,” Acevedo said. “But, bottom line is I think a little information before you roll something out goes a long way in allaying fears and confusion and that would have been helpful.”
Acevedo and Gonzalez said the city was prepared for the influx of people coming to Houston for the Super Bowl, and they have a plan for protesters.
“We have a designated area (near NRG Stadium),” Acevedo said. “You can’t put somebody two miles away and say, ‘Hey, there you go, have at it.’ We will have a designated area close enough for folks so they can make their point. … The First Amendment is the cornerstone of our democracy, as it relates to the ability of folks to protest and as it relates to the media to do their job, and so we take the responsibility of protecting that very seriously.”