It’s a tough time to be a police officer in the United States.

While the majority do the job right and for all the right reasons, a few incidents have blown up to paint every officer as violent and just looking to kill minorities in this country. That’s simply not the case.

However, recent history has shown us that police reform is probably needed. Badly.

Unfortunately, between the talk of police reform and the profound anti-police bias sweeping the nation, the NYPD isn’t really sure how to deal with the surging violent crime epidemic taking place on the streets of New York.

 It’s like the wild west on the streets of the Big Apple, with instances of gun violence soaring. Police say they’re between a rock and a hard place, CBS2’s Andrea Grymes reported Monday.

The latest NYPD numbers show a whopping 142 percent increase in shootings last week, compared to the same time last year: 63 versus 26.

Month-to-date, there’s a 129 percent spike: 188 shootings compared to 82 in 2019.

“These last three weeks have been really bad,” said NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan.

Police say it’s a catch-22; protesters and lawmakers continue pushing for NYPD budget cuts and reforms, while gun violence is surging.

“We need some clarity from the City Council and from the communities we serve, exactly how they want to be policed,” said Monahan.

This comes amid talks of defunding the police.

Maybe it’s just me, but that’s probably not the best idea out there.

Mayor Bill de Blasio touted the role of the “God Squad” will play going forward in reducing crime.

“We have so much work to do as a community, we have so much work to do as families, as mothers, as fathers,” said Pastor Gil Monrose, president of The God Squad.

The squad responds to shootings, but also does preventative work, like meeting with gang members and the formerly incarcerated to try to get them on the right path.

“We look in our community and we’re a little disheartened when we see that we’re taking each other’s lives,” said Pastor Louis Straker, another God Squad member.

Now, I can’t stand de Blasio, but trying to take a preventative approach to violent crime is, ultimately a good thing. I applaud him for making the effort.

However, that doesn’t mean leaving your police flapping in the wind. Preventative efforts take time to show any kind of impact. They should be done in conjunction with regular policing, not instead of them. Especially when it’s clear that what they’re doing in this precise instance isn’t yielding any real positive results.

The two have to go hand in hand for there to be any meaningful change. Preventative measures to help guide people away from that kind of lifestyle–and yes, crime is a lifestyle choice–and policing to scoop up those who either don’t listen or didn’t get the message.

Plus, it’s dumb to put your faith in a preventative system that you don’t know will work.

The police need the support of the city they serve. In New York City, they’re not getting it.