“I never differentiated between male/female cops. I only admired crime-fighters; gender was a non-issue for me. Have I met some female cops who I thought needed much more seasoning? Yes. But I also discerned the same in the opposite gender as well…”
During my police academy training, there weren’t many female police recruits in my class. Nor were there many in classes before and after mine. When I graduated the academy and hit the streets as a full-fledged policeman, my agency had only a few policewomen. Traditionally, law enforcement officer roles have been largely dominated by male counterparts.
The Austin Police Association sculpted an image of how the American public perceives a cop: “When people hear that word there is a very specific image that comes to mind: a tall male, with square shoulders and a sturdy jaw line. He is wearing an impeccable blue uniform, a gun on his hip, and highly polished black boots.” Notice there is no mention or hint of anything other than masculinity. There is no suggestion of femininity or use of the word her. And that is precisely their point.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, three government sources collate law enforcement employment data. However, of those three sources (the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting; the Annual Survey of Public Employment and Payroll; the Census of State and Local Law Enforcement Agencies), only the FBI’s UCR reports contain gender statistics.
In 2011, the FBI UCR statistics reflected females comprised 12 percent of all cops employed in the United States.
From a Bureau of Justice Statistics (Law Enforcement Management and Administrative Statistics – LEMAS) report published in 2015, the most-current figure for female cops (FY-2013) in the United States stands at 12 percent nationwide, or roughly 58,000 women in policing.
Although the law enforcement community in the United States (and elsewhere) has come a long way, the numbers still indicate a relatively imbalanced ratio. Why that is can be anyone’s guess: traditional ideologies of woman and child-rearing to variables in physicality to emotional bases to glass ceiling theory. (Perhaps a better way of specifically coining it in law enforcement acumen is “brass ceiling,” denoting that police executive pinnacles are mostly attained by males.)
Although the law enforcement community in the United States (and elsewhere) has come a long way, the numbers still indicate a relatively imbalanced ratio.
Per a July 2013 report in Community Policing Dispatch discussing gender inequality in law enforcement circles, “Though [female] presence in the police force dates back to the beginning of the 20th century, it’s only been noticeable in the past 40 years. In the 1970s, women accounted for roughly 2 percent of sworn officers, with most of the women holding clerical positions.” That implies some women were assigned street patrol duties. I wonder about the differentiation. How’d they arrive at who gets desk duty versus who gets to actually perform police work on the streets? Was it by volunteering or by command staff noticing certain street-quality traits?
I suspect there were individuals who diplomatically pushed for the real McCoy and became catalysts for female cops to get from behind desks and into squad cars. As Pauline Crabbe once said: “Any woman who is a first in a field previously dominated by men has the responsibility of opening doors for other women.” Ms. Crabbe was the first black female justice of the peace and the quote you just read is upon the opening page of First Women Sheriffs in the United States of America.
Albeit a microcosm example of deficient numbers of female cops, a January 18, 2018 article by The Knox Student, Knox College’s school newspaper, reported that, of its 14 police officers, only two are female. Knox College Campus Safety Director Mark Welker said, “Knox College does not discriminate, but we do try and be fair in our hiring process. If there is a highly qualified male candidate and a female candidate with no experience we will default to the male candidate, regardless of us wanting to increase our [number of ] female officers [on the force].”
Conversely, the St. Paul Police Department recently announced its shortage of female cops, and what it plans to do to shore-up the gender disparity. Twincities.com wrote a piece on female officer deficit. Titled “Not enough women are becoming St. Paul cops, so the recruitment push is on” the Pioneer Press reported that in “trying to get the word out to women about law enforcement as a career path…the St. Paul police department has slated its first Women in Uniform Recruitment Event — open to those 14 and older — on Saturday, [January 13, 2018].” Age 14 and up…typifies encouraging freshman high-schoolers.
Current authorized sworn strength of St. Paul PD is 630, and 95 of those are female police officers.
TwinCities.com wrote: “…research has shown that women can bring a different approach to law enforcement: they are less reliant on force and more dependent on communication, said St. Paul Deputy Chief Mary Nash.” That’s all well and good, providing the bad guy concedes to such methods. However, I’ve seen female officers commence that route and wind up in ground-fighting episodes. Neither is necessarily better than the other. And having more than one option in the bag of tricks is a formidable playbook in the pocket of any cop.
Regardless of any police agency’s purported underrepresentation of female cops, any online search seems to supply a bevy of images of lady cops doing The Job. From researching this subject matter, a planet-load of images of female cops arose. Gone are the days when lady cops were sworn-in and given desk duties, their spiked heels and pantyhose quaintly tucked under tabletops and phone banks. Nowadays, civilian support staff perform internal responsibilities.
An archived San Francisco Police Department photo depicting it’s first cadre of sworn female police officers donning pantyhose and high heels. (Credit: Facebook/Female Law Enforcement Officers)
Perspectives on how the earliest police women were dressed vary. One commenter said “Tried that once…Skirt, pantyhose, heels. And all I did was work the front counter and I was just miserable.” Another voiced “Can you imagine running after and tackling a guy in that? So very thankful for those who braved the road to what we have now.” And yet another weighed-in, saying “These were the women who started first – if it wasn’t for them none of us would have been able. We should thank them!” Sounds like an echo of Ms. Crabbe’s sentiments.
Present-Day Policewomen
Community Policing Dispatch states that “despite progressive legislation aimed at procuring gender equality in the United States, women today make up only 13 percent of the force, most significantly in larger departments.”
A recent police academy class in Burlington, North Carolina may reflect changing tides. On January 19, 2018 Fox News 8 reported on a first-ever majority-female class of police cadets. “Six of the nine officers sworn in were women. It’s the first time in the department’s long history a majority of females took the oath in a class,” wrote Alex Rose.
One of the nine new Burlington cops is Nanette Newton, and she looks at her milestone this way: “I think it’s one step closer in reaching some of the goals that I know females have been striving for.”
I grew up watching any/all cop shows on TV. My passion for policing started when I was around 5-6 years-of-age. I delved into all-things-police and devoured every cop series (kept me off the mean streets of Brooklyn and out of trouble).
For any weekend bingers out there, the list of cop shows is rather infinite, spanning decades. I recall seeing TV series centered on female cops: “Get Christie Love!” and “Police Woman” and “Charlie’s Angels” whose trifecta of badged female beauties’ “skills were being wasted in menial duties such as filing and answering phones. A mysterious millionaire named Charles Townsend took them away from all that by opening his own private investigation agency, and hiring these gorgeous ladies as his operatives.”
Texas-based police Officer Susana Sanchez wrote pointedly when she said of women in policing: “When the public thinks of a female officer, certain visions dominate. Either she’s so manly in her attributes and manner that she is stripped of all her femininity, or it’s October 31st and she is wearing a sexually objectifying costume. Sometimes, the female officer is placed in a box where she is the diplomat, the smooth-talker, the one who calms a situation and handles paperwork, but not the one who could respond to an active-shooter or fight for a stranger’s life.”
Placing real-life female police officer faces to colorize the words of Officer Sanchez, the Austin Police Department recently produced a video to not only exemplify its contingent of women in policing but also their wide-ranging capabilities.
I never differentiated between male/female cops. I only admired crime-fighters; gender was a non-issue for me. Have I met some female cops who I thought needed much more seasoning? Yes. But I also discerned the same in the opposite gender as well, some of whom did not make the field-training cut. That has less to do with gender inequality and more to do with focus, persona, and the drive to exceed.
Foot chases were no exception either. Female cop counterparts are just as agile and gazelle-like when sprinting over fences and, on the frontlines, donning enough riot gear to choke a whale.
Since my childhood passion for policing would come to fruition, I found myself backed by great cops. And the police academy indoctrinations never wane. Watching everything (hypervigilance) became as common as putting on socks.
During calls, it was easy to see male suspects sizing-up back-up officers who happened to be of the opposite sex. No problem. Cops pay acute attention to such gestures and nuances, exchanging eye contact and telegraphing tell-tale “watch out” body language so as to be on the same page…should things go awry.
Despite any size differential, I had glory moments whereby I witnessed sisters in uniform throw-down and grapple like a feisty MMA fighter jacked on Red Bull. Sweaty high-fives ensued in-private.
Foot chases were no exception either. Female cop counterparts are just as agile and gazelle-like when sprinting over fences and, on the frontlines, donning enough riot gear to choke a whale.
(Credit: Facebook/Female Law Enforcement Officers)
One of the most fulfilling assignments I had as a cop was when I became a Field Training Officer (FTO). The gold collar pins and increased pay were appealing, too. In the FTO role, it was my responsibility to shape new cops into crime-fighting entities while also retaining the myriad other hats cops wear from call to call. Through my years molding police rookies, I have trained a few females. Most came from police families: dad was a copper, brother is a police officer, etc. Some had no police lineage whatsoever, yet they picked up the smell of fear wafted by the innocent…and chose to do something about it. Who wouldn’t embrace anyone with that latter trait and conviction?
Women in Policing Career Forum events are offered by law enforcement agencies so that females aspiring to police service can gain real-time insights into what it is like to be a police officer. The Edmonton, Canada Police Services Recruitment division offers information sessions to attract viable female police candidates. The Rhode Island State Police hold an annual event exploring life for women who are cops.
The Rhode Island State Police hold an annual Women in Policing Career Forum providing glimpses of what life as a female cop is like. (Credit: Rhode Island State Police)
Celebrating 100 years of Women in Policing, the Western Australian cop shops touted their female police personnel and honored the span of 1917-2017 during which lady cops helped combat crime. Compare the black/white photo at the beginning of this article to all the latter ones…and we get a picture of evolution for women in policing.
As one of my assignments assisting our agency police recruiter at career fairs at local colleges/universities, I can attest the interest in joining the ranks of law enforcement was mostly from males. Far fewer females ever approached our police recruitment table. As Knox College Campus Safety director Welker stated, “The problem is not one of gender discrimination, the problem is getting more female candidates to apply.”
The problem is not one of gender discrimination, the problem is getting more female candidates to apply.
Despite the minority number, throughout the 100 years of women in policing, administrative ranks were achieved. More and more police chief plateaus have been conferred upon female police executives overseeing a largely-male contingent of cops. In December 2016, POLICE Magazine ran a cover story analyzing the aforementioned fact.
(Credit: Facebook/POLICE Magazine)
Aurora, Illinois police department Commander Kristen Ziman believes one static reason why a minority of women decline to advance in police administration roles is that the “hard work hours required of a law enforcement executive do not mix well with family obligations,” cited Curtis Crooke, a COPS Office contributor.
How many female police chiefs are there in the United States? There are roughly 18,500 law enforcement agencies in the US. In 2008, a National Center for Women and Policing study determined there were only 212 police chiefs, 2 percent of the nation’s total. In 2013, 3 percent of the nation’s police chiefs were female.
In August 2013, it was reported that Washington, D.C. was endowed with female police chiefs. The Drug Enforcement Administration, Secret Service, D.C. Metropolitan Police Department, U.S. Park Police, the FBI’s Washington Field Office, U.S. Marshals Service and the Amtrak Police Department were all led by women.
(Credit: National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives)
Oakland, California police department Chief Anne Kirkpatrick assumed command of the bedraggled agency on February 17, 2017. Chief Kirkpatrick previously served as chief of three law enforcement agencies in Washington State. Of taking over an embattled force, Chief Kirkpatrick assured her constituents and officers alike: “What I will tell you is that I am a leader. Those character traits are not gender-based. Those are leadership-based.” That’s a bit under-defined, but I believe she is saying her gender class has nothing to do with how well a women can lead the charge.
What I will tell you is that I am a leader. Those character traits are not gender-based. Those are leadership-based.
Dorothy Moses Schulz, John Jay College of Criminal Justice professor in New York confirms an increase in women elevating to the upper echelon in large, metropolis police departments. Schulz believes the vast majority of the public define women in executive police positions as ultimate healers for disrepute police agencies…simply because they are women.
Despite celebrating “brass ceiling” breakthroughs and forward-momentum strides in women attaining roles in traditionally male-dominated occupations, women in policing are humans first. Thus the same heartache and stress and sacrifices apply.
Regardless of gender, every law enforcement officer dedicates his/her life to preserve the lives we created in a nation-state blessed to be free. Our child/children are paramount, and that is a huge reason why good-hearted and courageous folks —both male and female— become cops.
(Credit: Facebook/Female COPS)
As mother of two and newly-sworn Burlington police Officer Nanette Newton described it, “…other children who need me gives me a sense of purpose.” A sense of purpose indeed. It takes a unique persona to endeavor to fill the role of police officer…and both genders bring dynamic qualities to The Job.
Yet, I’ve worked with some ladies who sing the blues quite well…and their presence among police ranks was no fluke.
