Multiple police unions are demanding a boycott of Quentin Tarantino films after the filmmaker attended an anti-police brutality rally and indicated that police officers are committing "murder."
The Port Authority Police Benevolent Association of New Jersey on Monday joined unions representing the New York Police Department, Los Angeles Police Department, New Jersey State Police, and Philadelphia Police in demanding the boycott, NJ Advance Media reported. The National Association of Police Organizations has also endorsed the boycott of the forthcoming The Hateful Eight and other Tarantino films.
Tarantino attended the rally organized by #RiseUpOctober in New York City on Oct. 24, which occurred soon after a New York police officer was shot and killed when chasing a suspect.
"When I see murders, I do not stand by, I have to call a murder a murder and I have to call the murderers the murderers," the filmmaker, who has made a fortune off his violent films, said during the rally.
"I'm a human being with a conscience," Tarantino stated, according to the Associated Press. "And if you believe there’s murder going on then you need to rise up and stand up against it. I’m here to say I’m on the side of the murdered."
Paul Nunziato, the president of the Port Authority Police Benevolent Association, slammed Tarantino in a statement Monday.
"Mr. Tarantino is a member of the Hollywood elite who make their living attempting to portray and pretend what real police officers encounter," Paul Nunziato said. "As such, it appears, based on Tarantino’s disgraceful comments regarding America’s police officers, he either possesses no concept of reality or intentionally ignores reality to promote a perverted political agenda."
The National Association of Police Organizations, which represents upwards of 241,000 law enforcement officers, last week called on any officers providing support to Tarantino’s projects to stop doing so.
"As a high-profile figure, Tarantino’s language is utterly irresponsible, particularly at a time when the nation is seeing increasing and persistent calls for the killing of officers. Anti-police rhetoric like Tarantino’s threatens the safety of police and citizens alike," the association said in a statement posted on its website.
"We ask officers to stop working special assignments or off-duty jobs, such as providing security, traffic control or technical advice for any of Tarantino’s projects. We need to send a loud and clear message that such hateful rhetoric against police officers is unacceptable."