How good are women cops? - African-American women police

Ebony, Sept, 1993 by Karima A. Haynes

THE static-filled voice on the squad car radio reported a gang fight in progress on Chicakdgo's South Side. Det. Patrice Bradford and her male partner switched on the siren and raced off into the night to answer the call. When they got to the scene, they could hear screams coming from a unit in a large apartment building. Exiting the vehicle, the two officers dashed into the building and tiptoed down a narrow, dimly lit hallway.

"We couldn't tell who was involved because it was so dark," Bradford says. "All we knew was that people were fighting."

Following the sound of voices, Bradford came to the unit where a 6-foot-2-inch and 240-pound man was brutally beating two women with a baseball bat and a broken glass bottle.

"I'm thinking, |My partner is 6 feet 3 inches and I'm 5 feet 4 inches. I will serve no justice here,'" Bradford recalls.

But then all of her years of police training and practical experience locked in. Instinctively, she grabbed the baseball bat and bottle from the man who was nearly twice her size as her partner separated the women.

"He was totally shocked," Bradford says, remembering the expression on the man's face. "Here he was beating up on two women and another woman comes along and takes the bottle and bat out of his hands."

Ironically, as Bradford was leading the man to the police cruiser, the gang fight--the real reason why they had come to the scene--had spilled out into the street.

"It was really a brawl," Bradford recollects. "At that moment, I realized I was more than just a woman. I was a police officer and I had to be effective. I gave up the feminine thing, pulled out my baton and began to physically subdue the suspects."

Det. Bradford is typical of the 35,000 Black women law enforcement officers nationwide who have proven that they are just as capable of firing weapons, apprehending suspects, investigating crimes and meeting the physical and mental demands of the job as their male colleagues. Yet, there is a lingering perception that somehow they are not good enough to wear the police uniform.

Det. Bradford of Chicago rejects the notion that female officers are not as competent as their male colleagues. In fact, she believes women officers bring a different--and necessary-- perspective to policing than male officers.

"I think women have a real desire to perform a public service," Bradford asserts. "We are patient, we are a calming influence and we genuinely want to help people. I think men do this job mechanically. They seem to be caught up in the ego and image of being a cop."

Interestingly, many Black male law enforcement officers agree. Perry Anderson, commissioner of the Cambridge (Mass.) Police Department and retired chief of the Miami Police Department, has nothing but respect for Black women police officers.

"I consider Black women officers to be both colleagues and friends," Anderson says. "They perform their duties in an outstanding manner and in some ways outperform men in that they are often more patient, better communicators and are more of a calming influence in intense situations than men. But, they are aggressive when they have to be."

Most Black women law enforcement officers say they get a great feeling of fulfillment out of serving their communities. They say it's a good job, with good pay, good educational opportunities and a good future. One female law enforcement official says it's a career where Black women can "write their own ticket."

Although Bradford is trained to use her baton and fire her gun, she sees both actions as a last line of defense. Most of the time she employs reasoning and mediation to settle disputes. "I think maintaining your composure and presenting a balanced demeanor is more effective in handling potentially volatile situations," she says.

Det. Bradford's colleague, Investigator Natalie Doster of the Los Angeles Police Department, agrees.

"Black women police officers understand that there is no reason to be a |Jane Wayne,'" Doster points out. "Just because you have a gun doesn't mean you have to be big and bad. You have to give people respect."

Many times men she has encountered on the streets don't want to hear what a woman police officer has to say, Doster explains. "Sometimes they act like jerks and you have to be the one to calm them down. But if they are cool, there is no need to come on strong."

Sgt. Lita Abella, who serves with Investigator Doster on the Los Angeles police force, knows only too well the importance of keeping a cool head in a dangerous situation.

The 12-year veteran's training was put to the test during the three-day riot that followed the acquittal of four White male police officers charged in the infamous videotaped beating of Black motorist Rodney G. King. Abella was called in to help quell the explosive violence that erupted minutes after the judgments were read. "Everything was so chaotic on the streets you didn't have time to blink," Abella remembers. "From one moment to the next, you didn't know if you were going to turn a corner and catch a looter or if someone was going to put a bullet in your head."