Police Community Relations - Sex Conscious Hiring and Professionalism (From Journal of Crime and Justice, Volume 4, P 48-60, 1981, Sloan T Letman, ed.)

• NCJ Number: 85220
• Author(s): B R Price; R Price
• Date Published: 1981
• Length: 14 pages
• Sale Source: Pocket Books
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: Paper presented at the American Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, March 1980, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Annotation

As an alternative to unsuccessful police-community relations programs, departments should adopt aggressive affirmative action plans which are both race and sex conscious and should renew their emphasis on police professionalism.

Abstract

Police community relations programs have been generally ineffective in improving the level of trust between the community and the police. What the police do within the department, as well as what they do on the street, influences police-community relations. A department's failure to have a sufficient number of women or to achieve a racial and ethnic balance similar to that found in the community causes serious problems. This affects how the department treats its members and how the police treat the community, particularly regarding the use of force. Minority communities question the motives and good faith of the police to provide protection, and women doubt the ability of police to serve their needs. Once the proper racial and gender-based ratio is reached, attention should be directed to professional responses by the police. The inculcation of professionalism, with its standards of universality, accountability, and responsible exercise of discretion, is the second requisite component of a truly effective police-community relations plan. Footnotes and 21 references are included.