Chatham-Kent Police Service Welcomes Release of Best Practices to Guide Police in Serving LGBTQ Communities Groundbreaking document to help strengthen relationships between gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities and police
Chatham-Kent, On – The Chatham-Kent Police Service today welcomed the release of a best practices document that will help Ontario police services proactively address issues of importance to members ofgay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer communities across the province.
The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police’s (OACP) 80-page Best Practices in Policing and LGBTQ Communities in Ontario is the first best practices resource document of its kind developed in Canada.
“This document will help our police service develop positive relationships with members of our LGBTQ citizens and serve their public safety needs,†said Deputy Chief Gary Conn. “We have a duty to meet the expectations of all our communities and want LGBTQ citizens to feel that their police service is there to work with them to ensure their safety and security.â€
As a living document, Best Practices in Policing and LGBTQ Communities in Ontario will assist police services in Ontario to proactively deal with issues related to police and members of LGBTQ communities. By having Ontario police services and community organizations share their knowledge and experiences, the OACP is seeking to equip police leaders and their police officers to better serve all members of our communities.
Best Practices in Policing and LGBTQ Communities in Ontario was researched and written by Kyle Kirkup, a Trudeau Scholar at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, under the auspices of the OACP Diversity Committee and received extensive input from police and community groups across Ontario. For a copy of the document, please visit www.oacp.ca