The Cops Standg Wh, and for, the Gay Communi They Serve

Contents:

• SHIRTLS EGYPTIAN POLICE AMY GRADUATN GO VIRAL: ‘FOR A TERRIFYGLY HOMOPHOBIC ANTI-LGBT GOVERNMENT … THIS SCREAMS PRETTY GAY’ — WATCH
• THE COPS STANDG WH, AND FOR, THE GAY COMMUNI THEY SERVE
• FIRST OPENLY GAY COUPLE JOS BOSTON POLICE FORCE

SHIRTLS EGYPTIAN POLICE AMY GRADUATN GO VIRAL: ‘FOR A TERRIFYGLY HOMOPHOBIC ANTI-LGBT GOVERNMENT … THIS SCREAMS PRETTY GAY’ — WATCH

The notor neighborhood gay biker bar the Police Amy movi. Others wked at the event’s homoerotic unrton. “That’s probably the most gay thg I’ve ever seen my life, ” said one observer, while others lled “the gay circ” and an “outstandg LGBT para.

A bizarre graduatn ceremony of the Egyptian Police Amy featurg paras of flexg shirtls men jumpg through rgs of fire has gone viral, tchg the attentn of Gee Takei, who tweeted, “For a terrifygly homophobic and dangeroly anti-LGBT ernment Egypt, this screams pretty gay. Reports n be found across the Uned Stat of police allegedly g excsive force agast lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer people. The multiday prott — wily nsired a pivotal turng pot the morn gay rights movement — was triggered by a police raid on the popular Stonewall Inn gay bar.

History, police officers were bound to enforce explicly anti-gay laws — om lol measur outlawg men om “impersonatg a female” to the wispread crimalizatn of same-sex sexual activy. Texas that gay sex was crimalized throughout the untry.

THE COPS STANDG WH, AND FOR, THE GAY COMMUNI THEY SERVE

She poted to a study published by the Williams Instute May that found lbian, gay, bisexual and queer people are six tim more likely than the general public to be stopped by police (data about transgenr dividuals were not available the datasets analyzed). The bans have been divisive, even wh the LGBTQ muny — and particularly among openly gay police officers.

FIRST OPENLY GAY COUPLE JOS BOSTON POLICE FORCE

Prr to the start of this trag, negative attus about the LGBTQ muny were reportedly pervasive wh the partment: In 1996, durg a retrag of veteran officers, a word associatn exercise asked for rpons to the word “gays. Gtavo Alvarez, a gay rint of Palo Alto, California, settled his lawsu agast s police partment after accg of vlatg his civil rights, rultg a settlement that clud a $572, 500 payout and a one-off two hours of mandatory LGBTQ-awarens trag for all police officers the partment.

“There was no secret that he was gay, and the officers fely ed that as a way to mean him their prr ntacts wh him and also durg this ntact. In New York Cy — where LGBTQ trag is provid by the Gay Officers Actn League (GOAL) for both new recs and veteran officers — Cummgs wants the police missner to be a civilian and lgs om the Civilian Complat Review Board, the NYPD’s oversight agency, be bdg. “Across the board systemic racism and homophobia is play wh policg, so go beyond trag and budget.

But as the print of the force’s only LGBTQ aternal anizatn — the Gay Officers Actn League, or GOAL — his other role is to serve and support his brothers and sisters drsed blue … and rabows.

Gay police officers straddle two worlds: Outsi the force, they are sometim viewed wh spicn by their own kd.

As part of the force, they’re navigatg the very stutn largely rponsible for the vlence that led to the morn gay rights movement. In fact, the gay rights movement was born out of a rt agast the police. In 1969, New York Cy officers raid the Stonewall Inn, a gay club Greenwich Village, sparkg vlent protts and clash that lasted six days.