SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento's Pride organizers have reversed course this week, announcing that this weekend Sacramento police officers will be welcome in full uniform. This comes after the department settled a dispute with leaders of the city's LGBTQ+ community, who previously asked that officers wear polo shirts while patrolling.
In a post last week, the Sacramento LGBTQ Community Center said they did not want Sacramento Police Officers at their event if they were wearing full police uniforms.
Police officers in the LGBTQ+ community, like Capt. Pamela Seyffert, responded, saying that they felt excluded in something that represented them, too.
"I am a member of the LGBTQ community, but I've also been a police officer for 30 years," said Seyffert. "So, it's personal because I have the advantage of being a member of both communities that mean a lot to me, and equally so. So it becomes personal."
This is the second time the relationship between the two organizations has been controversial. In 2018, officers were asked to not attend following the killing of Stephon Clark, an unarmed Black man who was shot and killed by police in Meadowview.
RELATED:
Some in the LGBTQ community have said they don't feel safe around police in uniform. Seyffert responded to the assertion.
"I'm frustrated when I hear that because we don't want to be that," explained Seyffert. "I don't want to be, no one here wants someone to be afraid of our uniform just if we're walking up the street. That's something we always have to strive to fix and the only way to do that is just to continue to show up in the community."
To remedy the situation and build relationships, the police department met with representatives from the LGBT Community Center in late May. At the meeting, they were told that the decision against uniforms was motivated to “protect those who experience anxiety and fear provoked by the uniform, particularly transgender people and queer people of color,” according to a joint statement released on Thursday.
Additionally, this year's Pride events coincide with the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall Uprising, when the New York City LGBTQ+ community fought back against police officers who raided a gay club in the city's famous Greenwich Village. On Thursday, New York City's police commissioner apologized for the 1969 raid at the Stonewall Inn. The event inspired the gay rights movement.
Despite this history, Carlos Marquez, Board President for the LGBT Community Center, agreed that the Center couldn't be surprised by the negative response to their uniform request, and said that only working together would “bring about the deeper change we seek."
"If we're really going to represent the entire community, the entire spectrum of the community, we need to make sure we're supportive of the most marginal, the most marginalized," explained Marquez. "We know that transgender folks and queer people of color continue to be victim through disproportionate policing in a way that we think has to change."
Still, he says he hopes everyone can come together this weekend.
"I hope that what we see this weekend is a moment of unity when people can coexist and agree that, while we do have things that certainly we want to remedy, that we can move forward together," said Marquez.
Police Chief Daniel Hahn said in the meeting, the department and LGBTQ+ community members developed a plan to bring about policy revision, education, collaborative community forums and youth programs, among other things.
“Everyone at the table listened, heard one another, and spoke from the heart, making it apparent everyone had the same desire to do what is best for the community,” Hahn said. “It’s a complex landscape but ultimately boils down to a simple shared desire: we all want to be accepted for who we are and to feel safe and welcome in our own communities.”
Together, the organizations will implement the following:
Community Advisory Committee: Will establish to examine and recommend policies and best practices that improve service delivery to the LGBTQ community and remove all barriers for LGBTQ individuals.
New Officer Training: Create LGBTQ-focused community engagement training for all new officers that elevates the voices of marginalized LGBTQ community members and discuss the role of implicit bias.
Community Forums: Organize ongoing LGBTQ community forums that include the Chief of Police, Executive Director or board president of the Community Center, LGBTQ police officers and interested LGBTQ community members.
Enhanced LGBTQ Liaison Position: Along with the community, the liaison will advocate and assist in updating and creating policies, procedures and track current laws as well as state and national LGBTQ community trends.
Center Complaint/ Reporting Program: Will establish at the Community Center to report crimes and/or complaints to the Police Department in an accurate, timely and affirming manner.
“This agreement reflects so much of what I love about our city, the embrace of dialogue and the building of bridges," said Councilmember Steve Hansen.
Hansen praised the dialogue and resolution between the department and center, and went on to say:
"We owe it to all members of the LGBTQ community, especially those who are transgender or people of color, to ensure their voice is heard and their safety be paramount every day all day.
We also owe it to the LGBTQ officers and allies to recognize their pioneering role in opening up law enforcement careers to people of diverse backgrounds.
Above all else, we owe it to our City and residents to show the power of neighborliness in working together to promote a welcoming, safe, and supportive community.”