Emily Riley focuses on the potential impact of increasing the number of women serving in American police departments in this article from the 25th of September 2020, published by the John Jay College’s Center on Media, Crime and Justice. Riley focusses on work being done by Maureen McGough at the New York University’s Policing Project which explores the impact of a more emotionally intelligent system of policing.
The NYU Policing Project research makes the point that female officers face less complaints regarding use of force, cost their departments less as a result of fewer civilian lawsuits, and are ultimately better equipped to interact with diverse communities and victims of sexual assault.
The Policing Projects “30 by 30” plan, which aims to have women make up 30% of police personnel by 2030 (From their current 10-13%), specifically seeks to “[change] the narrative about what policing is and [overhaul] the traditional recruitment strategy.” Policing has long been a traditionally male environment, and it still emphasises ingrained narratives of the police being hyper-masculine, aggressive, and physically forceful.
These ideas very often undermine the relationship with the wider community, as well as make this career path less appealing to women. For the police to be able to operate at maximum effectiveness in a community, there has to be mutual respect between the police and the community, as well as consent on the part of the community for the role the police play in ensuring public safety. A key part of this equation is for the police to, to the greatest extent possible, reflect the community they serve, particularly from a gender and race perspective. Re-imagining and re-shaping policing in America, and around the world means more women police officers and more diverse police services.
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