Incorporating diversity: police response to multicultural changes in their communities

FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin,The, Dec, 1995 by Brad R. Bennett

A great demographic change is taking place in the United States, making the population much more multicultural and diverse than it used to be. As with other kinds of social changes, law enforcement agencies must adapt to the population shifts in their communities.

This article discusses the findings of a study undertaken to determine how law enforcement agencies in four California cities responded to demographic changes that took place in their communities between 1980 and 1994. The departments in San Jose, Long Beach, Stockton, and Garden Grove(1) now police cities where African Americans, Asians, and Hispanics represent almost 50 percent of the population, an average of a 17-percent increase in the ethnic population since 1980. The departments have employed a number of strategies to best serve their changing communities.

REPRESENTATION AND INCORPORATION

All four police departments have made concerted efforts to incorporate into their organizations the varied and diverse members of their communities. Through recruiting and hiring strategies, citizen participation, training programs both for employees and community members, community outreach initiatives, and community policing, each department has embraced its diverse community groups.

Recruiting and Hiring

San Jose developed a philosophy that recognizes and espouses the value of a diversified work force. This philosophy provided the fundamental ingredient that fostered the attitude necessary to lay the foundation for a successful recruiting and hiring strategy. Many of San Jose's recruiting efforts involve officers as culturally diverse as the applicants they seek. The recruiters seek out potential applicants by attending events, such as festivals and job fairs, frequented by people from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, by advertising in bilingual publications, and by offering incentives to applicants who speak more than one language.

In addition to these fairly traditional approaches, San Jose also developed some unique ways to recruit and promote ethnically diverse employees. The department's program rewards officers with up to 40 hours of paid leave if the individuals they recruit become police officers. The department also helps all officer candidates to overcome obstacles, cultural or otherwise, in preparing for the department's written tests. Mentors from ethnically diverse police officer associations within the department help newly hired officers acclimate to the department.

San Jose's efforts to incorporate representatives of diverse groups do not stop at the entry level. The department continually monitors the composition of special units, such as the detective, gang, training, and personnel units, to ensure that they represent the department and the community. Officers can serve in special units for only 3 years so that all members of the department have an opportunity to do so.

The department also incorporates diversity into its promotional procedures. Recruiting efforts and community relations are enhanced when community members from diverse backgrounds see people similar to themselves in a variety of positions and ranks throughout the department.

Similar to San Jose, the Long Beach, Garden Grove, and Stockton Police Departments have taken steps to recruit and hire personnel who reflect the cultural composition of their communities. Special emphasis has been placed on recruiting Asian applicants because of the large increase in Asian populations in these communities over the past decade.

All three departments hired individuals specifically to work with the Asian community and to attract more Asian applicants. Community leaders in Long Beach also help by training people within their cultural groups so they can qualify as potential candidates for positions within the police department and in city government in general. In addition, Long Beach established an Asian Affairs Advisory Committee, while Garden Grove works with the City Cultural Cohesiveness Committee to improve its recruiting efforts.

Citizen Participation

All four departments have undertaken successful efforts that bring diverse individuals into their organizations at different levels. These include civilian community service officer, reserve officer, police cadet, Law Enforcement Explorer, and Police Athletic League programs. Such initiatives provide excellent opportunities for police departments to familiarize citizens with agency operations.

These police departments also use a variety of methods for determining the concerns of community members. Forming advisory groups representative of the entire community has proven to be one effective way to establish collaborative relationships with diverse groups. Advisory groups give residents a voice and help them ensure that the department understands their unique needs and serves them in a professional manner. Such groups also prompt police agencies to be more open and responsive to the community.

In addition to forming advisory boards, departments developed neighborhood groups and solicited information through focus groups and citizen surveys. As many agencies move toward a more service-oriented, community-involved approach to policing, it will become increasingly important for the police to try to represent the wide variety of community groups in the ranks of employees and to incorporate the voices of the full range of citizens.