Tuscaloosa's Annual "National Night Out" Set for August 12th

The Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Department in conjunction with the Tuscaloosa Police Department and all of the other law enforcement agencies present in Tuscaloosa County will be hosting their National Night Out on August 12th at the Government Plaza. With the Government Plaza being a popular park and venue for outdoor events in the middle of downtown Tuscaloosa that is across the street on the side from the Senator Richard Shelby Federal Building and Courthouse. Tuscaloosa's National Night Out is set to begin at 5:30 on Tuesday, August 12th, and will last until 7:30.

The National Night Out is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police and community partnerships alongside neighborhood camaraderie. It is sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch which was founded to help community watch groups have the resources they need to stay involved in their respective communities. With the first National Night Out being held in 1984. In fact, Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson, who was the first female senator in Texas history, described the National Night Out as an event that " . . . triumphs over a culture that isolates us from each other and allows us to rediscover our own communities."

And Tuscaloosa County Sheriff, Sheriff Abernathy, states that "It is incredibly important to make sure that the community and law-enforcement have a great working relationship and night out against crime is one of many ways to do that."

In fact, the importance of police and community partnerships has come to the forefront in recent years as the FBI reported that 194 law enforcement officers were feloniously killed between 2021 and 2023. Making it the highest estimated number in any consecutive three-year period over the past two decades. As the passage of time has made modern society forget the importance and need of having a professional police force. With the first organized, publicly funded professional full-time police services in the USA being established by the city of Boston in 1838. And the growing urbanization and its accompanying social disorder of the mid-19th century leading to other large cities following suit in developing a professional, municipal police force.

In Tuscaloosa, the city established its first professional police department in 1896 when it changed the Town Marshal's title to Chief of Police and hired three full-time officers. At that time, according to the 1890 census, the city had a population of 4,200. At present, according to the 2018 City of Tuscaloosa Annual Report, the city of Tuscaloosa is authorized to have 285 sworn police officers, with an additional 16 sworn auxiliary officers, and 75 civilian support personnel. With the city of Tuscaloosa having an estimated population of 114,288 as of mid-2025.

Generally speaking, the police officers are quite willing to meet with the community and share what they do during the National Night Out. And The Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Department in conjunction with the Tuscaloosa Police Department's National Night Out on Tuesday, August 12th, 2025, will feature hands-on equipment displays, rescue demonstrations, question and answer booths, the extremely popular and lovable K9 demonstrations, food, and fun for the whole family.

Luisa Reyes is a Tuscaloosa attorney, piano instructor, and vocalist.