Cops Walk A Mile In Our Shoes...

[Asher]

http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/01/010204copWalk.htm

Cops Walk A Mile In Our Shoes

Posted: January 2, 2004 8:03 p.m. ET

(Edmonton, Alberta) Edmonton police are taking to heart the old adage "to know what it's like to be me walk a mile in my shoes". In a step believed to be the first of its kind anywhere in the world new police recruits are now required to spend a day in a non-gay area "pretending to be gay".

Last week the first "exercise" was held for two new cops. The officers, wearing civvies walked hand in hand down a typical commercial street.

"I'm trying to get them to understand what it's like to be in that kind of a situation in this city," says Const. Steve Camp, who came up with the idea.

Camp is one of two officers who run the city police hate-and-bias crimes initiative.

"It was a really successful exercise," he said. "As far as I know, in my four or five years doing research on hate crime and victimization, I haven't come across a law-enforcement agency that has done this. If there is one out there, I don't know about it."

Afterwards, each of the participants was debriefed at police headquarters downtown. The experience had made them feel uncomfortable, awkward, uneasy and less safe.

"One guy said the avenue seemed to close in on him," Camp says. "He felt a heightened awareness of security -- very aware of the people around him. He felt intimidated. A group of construction workers was working on a wall, and they shut down their work to see this, when these guys walked by. I think that's when the intimidation hit," Camp said.

"[The other guy] said he felt angry because one man gave him a dirty look and then said something to his wife," said Camp

"They can intellectualize the process, but the emotional intellect is something totally different, and that's what we tried to accomplish here -- to give them the emotional response that a lot of people they're going to be dealing with as police officers are going to have."

The pilot project has won praise from the civilian co-chairman of a liaison committee between city police and Edmonton's LGBT community.

"I could talk to them about walking down Whyte Avenue," Fred Dicker said. "But when they come back and talk to their fellow recruits in class, it's so much more relevant than if I went in and talked about the experience. It's there and alive for them."

I think this is a great idea, but probably only really relevant to the hate crimes/harassment/etc units.

And "Steve Camp" is a brilliant name for the guy who came up with this.

[self biased]

indeed.

[Solly]

What a joke..police officers don't need to do this. If gays get victimised, then .. actually, I will stop there.

[MikeH]

Carry on, it'll get you a nice ban.

[Tattila the Hun]

I wonder, do lesbians get the same dirty looks as gay men?

[Skanky Burns]

Depends on if the men are attracted to the lesbians or not.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Tattila the Hun
I wonder, do lesbians get the same dirty looks as gay men?

I think straight women don't regard them highly.

Oh, and to the initiative. It is an excellent idea, I'm surprised it comes from Alberta

[DinoDoc]

How does one act gay? Do they just have to dress fashionably or what?

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
How does one act gay? Do they just have to dress fashionably or what?

Holding hands with a fellow man is enough of a hint already.

[Dr Strangelove]

Are they going to make similar efforts to pass for black, native american, alcoholic, drug addict, and hispanic? This should be interesting.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Spiffor

Holding hands with a fellow man is enough of a hint already.

Not really. They should kiss to complete the illusion.

[Solly]

Nope, just gays. The only remaining victimised group.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by Dr Strangelove
Are they going to make similar efforts to pass for black, native american, alcoholic, drug addict, and hispanic? This should be interesting.

This was what I thought too, but the problem with being a racial minority is that you cannot fake it (or you need a damn good make up).
For alcoholics and drug-addicts, though, I sure hope they will do it as well. Maybe the programme is wider than only gays, but Asher quoted a gay source.

[DinoDoc]

Am I the only one that finds this program assinine? If a cop doesn't understand that gays (like everyone else) dislike being harrassed, beaten up, or killed they don't deserve to continue wearing a badge. One day pretending to be something you aren't won't change that.

[Spiffor]

Originally posted by DinoDoc
Am I the only one that finds this program assinine? If a cop doesn't understand that gays (like everyone else) dislike being harrassed, beaten up, or killed they don't deserve to continue wearing a badge.

Obviously.
The question is not whether gays are harassed, the question is for cops to feel what this harassment is like. Such feeling can only be acquired through experience.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Spiffor
The question is not whether gays are harassed, the question is for cops to feel what this harassment is like.

Again I fail to see it's point from a law enforcement perspective.

[Solly]

They have got this completely backwards. They should make gays holding hands in public illegal, rather than this joke.

[Alex]

I agree with DinoDoc (and this scares me somewhat).

For law enforcement purposes, I simply can't see the point in that measure.

[Ming]

See ya in a week PA...

[Spiffor]

BTW Ming, is TCO currently banned? I'm wondering...

[Boris Godunov]

Originally posted by Alex
I agree with DinoDoc (and this scares me somewhat).

For law enforcement purposes, I simply can't see the point in that measure.

From my experience, police officers are often hesitant to take harrassment claims from gays seriously or to intervene when they see such things happen in public. This seems to me to be an effective way of clueing the officers in and making them more likely to take a stand in protecting people from being harrassed. They're lucky they only got stares and dirty looks. They should try being followed and having things thrown at them...

[chequita guevara]

Couldn't you permi-ban him? I mean, it's not like he isn't already.

[DinoDoc]

Originally posted by Alex
(and this scares me somewhat).

Why?

From my experience, police officers are often hesitant to take harrassment claims from gays seriously or to intervene when they see such things happen in public.

If a cop doesn't understand that gays (like everyone else) dislike being harrassed, beaten up, or killed they don't deserve to continue wearing a badge. One day pretending to be something you aren't won't change that.

[chequita guevara]

I think the excercize wasn't for cops to feel what it's like be harrassed, but rather to learn that, unlike what some people think, the harressment of gays is real and semi-constant. Many, if not most, people tend to dismiss the experience of the oppressed and call them over sensitive. You can't find out what it's like to be harrassed as a Black person or an Hispanic or an Asian, but pretending to be gay is easy enough to fool most people.

[DinoDoc]

Che: How is that relevent? If cops are turning a blind eye to criminal activity they should be bounced from the force, not forced into an idiotic exercise.

[chequita guevara]

That's nonsensical. Such tactics would leave society disarmed in the face of criminals. Which is to say, most cops don't take such claims seriosly.

[Sava]

It's amazing that conservatives have no sense of empathy... this is an excellent exercise. It's good for the ignorant as well as bullies, hate-mongers and bigots to know what it feels like to be the victim.

Canada is the land of tolerance and freedom...

America is a poseur

[chequita guevara]

I just wish Canada wasn't so damn cold.

[DinoDoc]

Cuba is closer.

[chequita guevara]

Yeah, but I like my conversations in English.