When the politically correct (PC) police start affecting the actual police, that’s a problem for society. We need the actual police to be free to do their job without restrictions other than those placed upon them by law.
This week the Ontario Provincial Police announced they would no longer include the gender of suspect, accused folks or victims because of the “need to be more progressive” according to Sgt. Carole Dionne.
“We will now say “the individual” or “the accused,” and not use gender-specific pronouns,” Dionne said. “In the case of a suspect where we need to be more specific, we will say “appears to be a female” or “appears to be a male.”
It’s hard to say where to begin with this.
As a police officer responding to, say, a robbery call, I want all available information and identifying characteristics about the suspect as I am approaching the crime scene. This includes height, weight, race, gender and clothing. I don’t want to hear about an ‘individual.’
This lurch towards progressivism in policing is not keeping our communities safer. I’m sure it’s making some people feel better about themselves, but it does nothing for the rest of us.
Unfortunately, political correctness in policing is not new.
Political correctness is what forced the Toronto Police Service to stop the practice of carding. Which really is nothing more than filling out an information card on folks you come into contact with. The politically correct types say this unfairly singles out members of the black community. Well, if that’s who the police are coming into contact with, it is what it is. Or, at least, it should be.
Several years ago, the Kingston Police Department enacted a policy where their officers were ordered not to identify people in their reports and other paperwork by race. In Vancouver, community activists have tried to get the VPD to stop street checks because that unfairly targeted First Nations people in the Downtown Eastside (DTES).
It only takes a brief walk around the DTES to figure out who makes up the majority of the population there and police crime reports make the issue even more clear.
Let’s be realistic. A person’s race is germane to identifying that person in the way of description and certainly, that person’s gender is also a big piece of that. No amount of political correctness will change that reality.
Equally, nowhere in the Magna Carta, the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the Canadian Bill of Rights or the Charter of Rights and Freedoms does it say that you have the right to not be offended. Nor does it say anything about your right to not have your gender identified by police.
A 2018 study done by the American think tank More in Common called ‘Hidden Tribes: A Study of America’s Polarized Landscape’, found that 80% of Americans think political correctness is a problem. Only a minority on the ‘woke’ political left believe in it.
So, why are police forces bending to the will of the minority on the political left?
Gun crime in Toronto has gone through the roof since the TPS put an end to carding. And the Liberals are determined to bring in legislation that will only affect law-abiding Canadians. Crime in our cities is a complex problem. But, I can guarantee you the law-abiding Canadians are not a part of the problem.
I can also guarantee you that politically correct policies by police agencies will not do a thing to help the issue. We expect the police to keep us safe and to work to keep crime numbers down.
I honestly don’t care if someone gets offended in the process.
