MINORITIES AND WOMEN IN LAW ENFORCEMENT
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Women in the law enforcement sector in the United States are not treated fairly and impartially. The ratio of female to male officers does not represent the community’s diverse ethnicity and gender. Currently, the BFOQ’S, which is the attribute or quality that employers consider when hiring and retaining employees, does not discriminate against women. In this case, the BFOQ requires police recruits to be below 29 years, and officers to be below 50 years (Ciccolella & Boone, 2011). Historically, the police force was composed of men because of the perception that women could not handle risky police tasks. The country introduced women to perform police duties in the 19th century primarily to help juvenile offenders. In this instance, policymakers believed that women were better with children than men. Significant changes in the treatment of women were laid out in the 20th century during the war due to the limited number of men (Kay & Huckabee, 2002). The number of women increased in the 1950s as the restrictions on their duties reduced. However, while restrictions on women in law enforcement have reduced, discrimination persists. Proactive recruitment strategies are necessary to solve the problem of discrimination of minorities and women in the police force. More women and minorities can only be recruited by enacting policies that identify candidates from the overlooked groups (Asquith, 2016). For examples, recruiters should rely on campaigns that appeal to the minorities and women in the communities. The departments should partner with minority organizations to reach potential candidates. Also, women can be encouraged to join the police force by being offered longer maternity leaves and childcare assistance (Asquith, 2016). Besides, the relevant departments can create internship programs that introduce and teach women the work of policing. Therefore, the relevant departments and agencies should recruit more minorities and women law enforcement officers. In this instance, hiring such groups in the police force will make the public more receptive to the police.
References
Asquith, C. (2016). Why aren’t US police departments recruiting more women? The Atlantic, 30.
Ciccolella, M. E., & Boone, T. (2011). Legal Aspects of Aerobic Capacity: Objective Evidence of the Ability to Work Part I: Age as a Bona Fide Occupational Qualification (BFOQ). Professionalization of Exercise Physiology, 14(8), 1.
Kay Decker, L., & Huckabee, R. G. (2002). Raising the age and education requirements for police officers: will too many women and minority candidates be excluded? Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies & Management, 25(4), 789-802.