There is no ideal officer, as long as there is an officer who is in the right state of mind with good intentions who wants to make a difference for every individual then that’s the type of officer that should be in certain positions of power the case for this law suit is clearly earned as passed on this officers testing scores in terms of getting a promotion he had earned it beyond a doubt he meet every expectation he needed such as getting third in ranking for a promotion two years in a row 2014 to 2015. This clearly was an issue that needed to go forth in turning into a law suit as this is decimation no officer should have to change their religion, sexual ordination, or go to a department that expects their race or ethnicity this officer has every right to get a promotion being denied to his own desires outside of the badge is not one of them. St. Lois was wrong for turning the officer based on the fact of him being gay this is not fair or even related to his own job performance This officer has also every chance in the word to be. Even if this officer had a different sexual orientation then officer he could be just as effective in his chain of command he could also be very responsible as if he ranked 3ed two years straight in testing then this officer is putting in the work to be successful in the line of duty. No ideal officer exists as not all two people are the same everyone has different experiences and background in their lives this won’t make anyone perform less or greater but what is shown as he did ranking third did establish that this officer earned his promotion. Eagle002, Eagle001
I agree with you because usually when your working in this kind of job settings you can handle a lot. Sometimes when it seems like too much it becomes overwhelming. It had to be something ongoing and occupied by many for him to want to turn it into a lawsuit. He doesn't deserve that type of treatment due to his sexuality. MSSA002
I think that if this officer was discriminated against it isn't right or professional. We all have our own opinions but when you make rude comments in a professional work area that creates tension. It is hard to patrol the streets and keep people safe with that kind of tension as well as better the community. Police Officers are viewed as role models whether they intend to or not. I personally don't believe in being gay but I don't think that gives anyone a right to discriminate towards someone who is. It takes a lot of mental strength to be an police officer and when you don't have a department that supports you that can make things rally hard. If he has proof that he scored the highest on the promotion test, and evidence the comment was made, he should have a successful case. It raises questions though when the person who made the comment resigned shortly after even though it was for a completely different circumstance. If the officer used the chain of command to handle the situation I think the picking should have been addressed. The main concern for me would be if his "gayness" isn't affecting his work performance he shouldn't have been judged or even commented on. MSSA002
I agree with you a hundred percent because it isn't professional at all. Who cares if the guy is gay he is probably one of the best police officers in that department and its just so sad that we have people in the world that mistreat people because of something they can't help. It does take a lot of strength to be a police officer and when they don't back you up it would be extremely hard to be an effective police officer. Im glad this guy stood up for himself hopefully more people stand up for themselves.CRC001,CRC002
Reading an article like this just shows how people still today get mistreated no matter if its their race, sexuality, or even gender for instance a woman. You have these amendments that state equality for stance the fourteenth amendment states it as well as the equality rights amendment. Just makes me mad that people go so long getting treated like this. This is just one case but, there are so many more cases out there that just go unnoticed or the person thats getting treated like this doesn’t stand up and say something. Even the first amendment states that you have the rights of your religion, speech, press and it allows free exercise. People can’t help if there gay or lesbian so you can’t judge people from that. They state that Wildhaber has been on the department since 1994 and that he is a veteran and also saved someone from a burning car. People that meet the standards and requirement of a police officer should be the only thing that matters. People in this world discriminate so much and because they do people in this world are getting overlooked and probably could be the best officers in the department but, because there a lesbian, gay, or a women they usually get mistreated and looked upon like they can’t do the job. This goes back to the 20-80 rule because not all officers are like this but, your still going to have officers that think like this. Thats why its big for our generation to learn the right way of how to police. If the new generation can get taught the right way maybe there is a chance then that we can get rid of that 20 percent. If we are going to get there though we need more people like Wildhaber to stand up for themselves and let faculty people know whats going on so that we can single out the people who are doing this. CRC001,CRC002
This is in turn putting a bad reputation on that police department over one issue of discrimination. Even thou this officer was clearly fit to earn the promotion ranking third in 26 other officers applying for the promotion. This was unfair treatment for a very respectable officer. This can be corrected if the department can make the correct choices to not single an officer out but to put him in position of power because he respectfully had earned the job. Eagle001 Eagle002
I agree, and this article is troubling to me because if members of the criminal justice system are being mistreated by their own, then members of society will obviously be treated the same way, or even worse than people like Keith Wildhaber. The criminal justice system should be setting the example of fair and equal treatment of all individuals, especially since those are the people that we police each and every day. gh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
It cannot really be proven if Keith Wildhaber was discriminated against, but that would not be the first time that our society has seen something happen related to discriminating because of sexuality, along with race. In the case of Keith Wildhaber, who placed third in two sets of testing among 26 officers, he said that he was watching all of those around him get promoted while he was remaining in the same place. It would undeniable that this was discrimination because of his sexuality if he had placed first in each of those groups of 26 people, but that was not the case. Keith says that he was told by a superior to “tone down your gayness” or else he would never reach his goal of receiving a promotion. The police force should be the last group of people to be discriminating against any category of people. Our criminal justice system is in charge of protecting each and every person, regardless of race, sexuality, or gender. Situations like this make me wonder just how much bias some of our law enforcement officers and members of the criminal justice system have implanted in their minds, which will immensely affect how they police each situation that they come across. If you want to be successful in this field, all implicit bias needs to go, maximizing performance and fairness to all individuals, even if you do not agree with the life decisions and ways of life that individuals choose for themselves. If the system is treating their own with this disrespect and discrimination, I don’t have high expectations that they are treating members of society any better than they are treating their own people within their departments. gh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
I agree that this article is troubling in the way that it makes you wonder if our criminal justice system is showing fairness to everyone when they cannot even show fairness to the people that work within the system. I agree that the police force should be the last place discriminating against people and it is very troubling to see this type of incident occurring. Implicit bias is a very dangerous and toxic thing that can derail many police forces and officers alike if it is not stomped out and taken care. treating everyone with equality and fairness should be the number one concern for the police force. Pack001, Pack002
This is actually my first time reading about something like this. Im guessing this type of discrimination isn't normally an issue for police officers. Either that or it just isn't reported enough. As being a professional in any field, especially this one, why does it matter if someone is gay, straight, lesbian, black, white, latino, whatever. As a police officer you have a lot more important things to worry about other than someones sexuality. With co workers judging or making inappropriate comments about another doesn't make them look good either. The rude comments you think might hurt someone else is actually hurting you with out you even knowing it, giving yourself a bad reputation as well. As far as reading this article, I feel that there is no ideal officer and people should no longer think that that or judge others. As a cop, if you are so bothered by a gay employee, how will you or how are you treating ones like that out on the streets of your community. kt001
I agree with you; police officers have a lot more important things to worry about other than someone’s sexuality, and the same goes for their race, religion, and gender. The rude comments definitely are hurting the officer’s own reputation. You also bring up a good point that if a gay employee bothers you, how can you be a cop when the world is filled with people who think differently than you? If that bothers the cop so much, it will probably affect his or her job and how he or she treats gay people. I also hope this discrimination is normally not an issue for officers. Scuba002
This article helps bring to light an issue that has been happening in our country for a while now. People have always been discriminated against in our country and that is very wrong, however, up until recently not much had been being done to help combat discrimination in the police force. I would imagine that this type of incident does not happen all that often as we have learned in class that the police force is a brotherhood/sisterhood and fellow officers would never discriminate against one of their own. This article also raises the question of maybe this sort of incident is happening more often than we think and we may just not know about it. People always have their implicit biases that they may not even realize they have but it always present in the way they talk and act. These implicit biases often hurt the person's reputation because they may be avoided because of their biases or maybe not even hired at all. Discrimination is a huge issue within our country and sadly it will not being going away anytime soon if the people with implicit biases do not start to be more understanding and accepting of everyone. As far as answering the question of "is there an ideal officer?" goes, my answer to that question would be that there is no ideal officer. All officers are different in their own way but are also connected through what they do, to say that there is one type of specific officer that should be the "model" officer so to say, is not logical. The criminal justice system is a system of fairness for all and if departments cannot even show fairness to their own employees then how can they be expected to show fairness and justness to the people in their communities. Pack001, Pack002
It is most unfortunate that these ideals are so late arriving. The ideas for true equality and freedom among all sexuality, races, and sexes. And the criminal justice system is unable to produce a model officer, and thus any good officer should be rewarded for their strengths on the job. - AJC001
This article brings up a few issues with the criminal justice system and promoting system. Sergeant Wildhaber should be promoted if he proves he has the credentials. If he is exceeding at his job, he deserves to be promoted. I do not believe there is an ideal cop. It is actually better to have diverse officers versus officers that are virtually all the same “ideal cop” because the diversity allows for learning between the officers. If Wildhaber can do his job efficiently and effectively, there should not be a problem when it comes to promotions. The lawsuit also has holes in it. According to the article, the lawsuit says, “Defendant believes plaintiff’s behavior, mannerisms, and/or appearance do not fit the stereotypical norms of what a ‘male’ should be.” That is ridiculous because we have female officers who “do not fit the stereotypical norms of what a “male” should be.” Female officers do just as well, if not better, than male officers. Gender, religion, ethnicities, etc should not be a factor in this. The only factor should be if the officer can do his or her job efficiently and effectively. Gender, religion, and ethnicity should also not affect the hiring process; it should solely be based on whether or not the person has the credentials and skills to do the job well. Scuba002
I completely agree. An officer should be promoted on merit, sexuality should play no part in that decision. Police departments should stand as a symbol of fairness in their communities, and this department has failed to do so. What should the gay community think about this? This department has people within it who won't even back gay officers, so why would they go out of their way to protect a gay man?-OKC001
I agree. If he is still good at his job why does it matter if he likes men or women. It isn't hurting anyone he comes there just like everyone else, to get a pay check. I think the whole thing was blown out of proportion. WS002
I found this article to be very saddening. As naive of me as it was, I never really thought cops, especially leaders within a department, would discriminate against somebody in this fashion. All police officers have the same job; to protect and serve. The thought that this officer can’t do that as well in a position of command because of his sexuallity is simply preposterous. Being diverse in the police force gives you an edge in certain situations that other officer don’t have. Being a diverse officer on a police force allows them to have insight into certain situations and allows them to do their job better. Having a liaison into the lgbtq community, and every other minority group within this department’s jurisdiction would be extremely helpful to that department, and give them greater insights into the communities they police. Sadly however, because of a few people’s unwarranted biases, this officer will be denied the opportunity to to the best of his abilities, serve and protect his community. No matter where you go certain groups will always face adversity, but because of this officer standing up to his chain of command, which can be a daunting task, other gay officers may not face the same discrimination he had to. The officers in the department that were the perpetrators in all of this should be ashamed of themselves, for treating a brother officer in this fashion. Police officers should always have each other’s backs no matter who they are, and these officers failed to do that.-OKC001
I agree OKC001, this article is deeply saddening. This man was discriminated against simply because of his sexuality and no one cared how good of an officer he was. I also was unaware about the discrimination that occurred between officers. I hope that one day police officers can be judged so harshly based on the way the treat civilians rather than their presentation. zmw001
I believe that the ideal officer is a police officer that works hard to actually change the lives of troubled members of his or her community for the better, however, I do not believe we will ever have the perfect cop. As long as we are using humans to police, we will always have our implicit biases and that can not be changed. It should not matter what an officers race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexuality is, as long as they are willing to put in the work and effort to actually positively impact citizens then they are great officers to me. Police officers should not be judged by their appearance or presentation, (so long as they look professional), but they should be judged by their actions and the way they treat civilians. It is upsetting that this officer, Sergeant Wildhaber, was insulted by a St. Louis County Police Board member and held in his place just because of his sexuality, even though his written test scores were superior in all rated categories. This man could have been the best officer in that department, but it does not matter. As long as he was openly gay he would not have been promoted. This just goes to show that implicit bias among police officers does not only affect their relations with the public but it also has a big affect on the relations with officers among the department. zmw001
I could not agree more zw001, when you said we will never have the perfect cop. Implicate bias is one of the biggest internal problems that police officers have. The main concern that departments should have about their officers is weather or not they can do their job efficiently and properly. Even if that means not following the law 100% of the time and taking matters into their own hands. A good police officer can actively communicate with anyone and end up settling to an agreement, causing the least amount of problems as possible. Bry001
Inequality. It is a part of life (sadly) and it is virtually everywhere. There is always somebody who considers themselves higher, an individual who will put others down for being different. And when we say that his is everywhere, we mean it. From hospitals, schools, theatres, restaurants, public transportation, officer jobs, mail delivery, and ever the governmental jobs of our governing bodies, which includes law enforcement agencies. In this article, St. Louis County Police Sgt. Keith Wildhaber is blocked from promotion in repeated occasions due to the fact that he is a homosexual. Personally, I think this a very poor way to run any administration, especially one with the government. An officer’s sex, race, sexuality, or economical status should not affect their right of passage into and through the ranks of a police force. The only thing that should matter in this job is their work ethic and their ability and effort towards improving their job, continuing their job, and their efforts to do well and continue to learn and adapt. Showing promise and care for the community is what matters. When an officer can effectively perform their job, can improve on their abilities and their mistakes, and is constantly becoming a better and smarter officer, said officer deserves the right to be promoted, especially is they show such high testing scores as Sgt. Wildhaber. Not only did the force deny him of his promotion due to his sexuality, they denied what was very much deserved to him. Sgt Wildhaber was scoring in the top three of the officers employed in his agency, yet he was not ever promoted while those around him were. Part of the reformation of our law enforcement habits definitely needs to include a correction of management within the police agencies. Individuals should not be so harshly denied of anything due to their sexuality, and the fact that this is happening is an outrage. We truly have a long way to go to reach equality. - AJC001
I agree with everything you said. We want to reflect the community we represent so that said community is more comfortable and in turn trusts us more. We know that there are people of all walks of life in our community, therefore we should be trying to show it. It's also a different time period. Who cares if an officer is gay? A lot of people have different sexual orientations and it is not something you can judge someone on. As long as you do your job to the best that you can you should be able to excel. Hootie002
This article definitely caught my attention. Typically police departments have had trouble with diversity in the department in terms of race, but now we are focusing on an individuals sexual orientation. What that St. Louis county board member said to Wildhaber was completely out of hand. Departments should not be the least bit concerned with what ones sexual orientation is, but instead their ability to carry out their duty of serving and protecting the public to maintain peace and order. According to the article, Wildhaber is an excellent candidate for the promotion at hand. He did his job and did it very well, but the board thinks he needs to tone down his gayness in order to receive the promotion? The only problem a homosexual officer would have is receiving rude behavior and comments from civilians they are dealing with. The officer could also have some sort of implicate bias against certain people because of their sexual orientation. Although, I could not see these two things preventing an officer from doing their job properly. It seems as if Keith Wildhaber is the perfect example. He is a homosexual and proves to excel at his job, well deserving of that promotion. Overall, police departments should not be focused on sexual orientation of an individuals, but instead their background history, experience, and skill level. Bry001
i agree with you completely. the department should not have been worried about this mans sexuality. I find this ridiculous that they have to to call this man out and even though this man is great at his job. i can't believe that they would not give him a promotion because he was gay.evo001
I love how you mentioned that an officer should be judged by his background history, experience, and skill level instead of his sexual orientation. I do not see, as you said, how this effects whether or not an officer does his job properly. Not saying that this is the case, but say there are other officers on the department that are a part of the LGBT community and are now afraid to come out in fear of not reaching the job standards. I know everyone says "It's 2017, what is the matter?" But it is true, as a police department that hires people of all walks of life, this shouldn't stop anyone from receiving the same opportunities. Wildhaber reached all of the standards needed for this promotion and it's upsetting that his sexuality is preventing him from the offer. behappy001
I agree that this officer was treated with so much disrespect. The sexual preference should not determine the way a officer is treated on the job. I also agree that a police officers sexual agenda should not prevent him from getting opportunities. KLICK001
every officer is and have their own way to police. as long as that officer can show passion to his or her community. Officer are look at a lot and watched by everyone in the community they serve. In this article it shows an officer that is gay being told to calm down. To me this is concidered discrimination. Which police departments nowadays are trying to get away from. THis officer that was discriminated against says he scored high on his promotion test. Then a very hateful comment was told to him and he wasn't given the promotion. It takes a lot to be an officer that is different and it makes it harder when the department doesn't back you.
You made a good point on how a hostile and discriminatory leadership environment can cause an erosion of the morale of the department, not to mention an erosion of trust in both departmental and civic leadership. You also brought up that police are watched by the community, this is why professionalism in law enforcement is key. CoolGuy001
I agree with you when you say that it takes a lot to be an officer that is different. In general it's harder for people that are different. If you don't fit the social "norm" then you are treated differently, which isn't right. At the end of the day we all bleed red. -dicaprio001
There are approximately nine million members of the LGBT community in America today. Being that it is 2017, I believe that being a part of this community is just as common as being heterosexual. I understand that many people have many different viewpoints about this and it's important to express these viewpoints, but I disagree with what is going on in this article. Keith Wildhaber claims a former St. Louis County Police Board member told him to "tone down his gayness" if he ever wanted to be promoted. As i was reading the article, I was caught between two different motives to turn down Wildhaber for the promotion. This is because it said that his written performance reviews showed that he "exceeded standards" or is "superior" in all rated categories. Because of this, either the department truly turned him down because of his sexuality and so they made his reviews outstanding to make up for it or he simply lacked a critical trait for the job. In 2014, as the article mentions, a justice department report suggested that the department create a diversity council to advise commanders on recruitment including lesbian, gay, bisexual, etc. The department has not acted on the recommendation. On the other hand, county police detective Joe Patterson says that the St. Louis County Police Association is actively recruiting LGBT members and the minority to serve on steering committees in order to bring forth not only concerns but ideas on how to improve the police association. The department also appointed Capt. Angela Coonce as LGBT liason, which advocates for the transgender community and their policies. As we are taught in class by Dr. White, there is always a bad apple that makes all the others look bad, in this case the entire board. As professionals and members of any community, it's important that to understand that everyone comes from all different walks of like, different sexual preferences, and different experiences. I believe 110% that if an individual brings what it takes to the table, with the right experience, performance, and mentality they are fit for any job. Implicit bias within the department is definitely shown within this article, and it has moved throughout the public too. I think that if Sergeant Wildhaber has what it takes to be promoted he should be offered the job, regardless of his sexuality. behappy001
The article covers the alleged refusal of a promotion for a qualified gay police officer. In the article, the officer in question was informed that he should "tone down the gay" or else he would not be eligible for a promotion that he was qualified for. This article highlights the ideas of professionalism and equal opportunity in police departments. If the officer was denied a promotion based only on his sexuality then that would have been a failure of the police department to maintain an equal opportunity environment. Promotions should be given based on merit and service record and not on a personal trait that does not negatively impact performance in the field. If the officer were told that he should "tone down the gay" then that would have been a failure of that individual's professional conduct by phrasing it that way. Anyone going into policing or any form of career that involves law enforcement or leadership should know that they are the ones that set the standard for everyone they are in charge of. If any officer of the law, especially one in a leadership position, engages in unprofessional conduct of any kind then he sets a negative example for all the people he is charged with to reflect. By using phrases like "tone down the gay" an officer erodes both his professional image, and the professional image of the department that he represents. CoolGuy001
In class we talk often about how our police department should reflect the community. We usually use this in the context of color, saying that when we are representing a city with a high minority population that we should have a high number of minority officers as well. It would make sense to not only try to look like our community but to be more like them. Hiring gay, lesbian, and trans officers is a good idea. These officers would be able to represent areas of the community that often times feel left out. In Sgt. Wildhaber's case he was treated and spoken to unfairly. In a classroom setting you would hopefully never hear a professor say "If you tone down your gay you might get a better grade" therefore it shouldn't be okay to say these things in the workforce. It is 2017, gay marriage is legal. More people with different sexual orientations are stepping out than ever before now that it is so much more widely accepted. There's no reason that comment should be tolerated. Unfortunately it seems like a he-said she-said type of situation. There is no ideal cop, just like there is no ideal human being. Everyone is different, no two people are exactly the same. Why should there be a specific way a cop must look or live to qualify him or her for higher positions? Hootie002
I would have to agree with the end of you comment, there is no ideal cop. That is very true because it takes a special kind of person to even become a cop, not matter how they look or are "different" in any shape or belief. A cop is someone who works as a person to serve and protect, doesn't matter who you are just as long as you can do the job. Flannel002
This article made me think of a comedy television show that I watch. The show is called Brooklyn Nine Nine. It is obviously a detective show that is set in Brooklyn in modern day times. How it connects to this article is that the Chief in the precinct is gay. Throughout the show you hear about how the Chief had a very hard time moving up the ranks because he is gay. I know that this is just a television show but it relates to this post so well. I can see it being hard for minorities to move up but from what I've noticed lately is that most departments are looking for the minorities compare to the majorities. I couldn't tell you if the minorities just aren't applying or if they are not completely applicable to be hired but it seems that most departments, at least around here are looking for different types of officers. What I mean by different types of officers is that they could be gay, black, white, female, male, pink, purple or anything different from the average white male fresh out of a university. But this was a very interesting article because I never really thought about how being gay would have an influence on a person in the criminal justice world. Flannel002
In this case Mr. Wildhaber was treated wrong because of his sexual orientation. I feel like it was very unprofessional for the other officer to say what he said to him. BY him saying he should tone down his gayness opened the door of judgement. Not just by one officer but, by the whole department. Why does it matter what his sexual orientation is, as logn as he is getting his work done it shouldn't matter. I feel like he did a real good thing by pressing charges becasue it is now 2017 and people are still facing discrimination just because of their sexual orientation. Being in Mr. Wildhaber they took it a step further and made it so that he would not get promoted athis job. They were messing with his money now. Then when confronted the other officer said he didn't say it, i feel like it is shady. He didn't think that he would go this far to press charges.I would have NEVER thought something like this would happen in such a strong department like policing. WS002
This just goes to show that the criminal justice system still needs some work. A officers sexual prefference should not determine how they are treated at there job. This officer was obviously a decent police officer by the ranks he was given and he still is treated so disrespectfully. The officer that told him to tone down his gayness really needs to hide his personal biases better when at work. If departments want to diversify their squads and relate with the community they really need to outshine the 20% percent of these officers creating 80% of the negative news articles. KLICK001
Mr. Wildhaber was treated very wrong in this situation all because of his sexual orientation? Your sexual orientation has nothing to do with your job nor should it affect the way he's treated at his job. As someone who goes to work every single day to make sure our grass is greener I could care less who he is interested in sexually. It's sad today that gay's rights and wellness are not treated the same as straight people. WE all bleed RED. No one is better than the next just because of who they are interested in sexually. At the end of the day there is no "ideal cop". You are who you are and if you are someone who is interested in making the world a better place and your heart is in it, it doesn't matter what your sexual orientation is. I think diversity is better, and causes for better police officers. -dicaprio001
I think there is reason enough, after what's read, to suggest an issue of discrimination. Other posts have spoke about the need for departments to "mirror" the community in a sense, and I have t agree. Community relations is a bedrock of policing. Not only as a policing force, but as an organization, there needs to be an essence of fairness and equal opportunity. I understand the lack of acceptance for the gay community, and I'm not exactly an advocate, but I do however believe that a person has the right to make their own preferences so long as it does not interfere with the parameters of law. More importantly, an officer that is well within the standards required for advancement, has served well to include awards, and has developed a good position on the force shouldn't be close to being passed up for consideration. Sounds to me like you need to be boys with someone up the chain of command to get where you want to go, as suggested by Saracino's actions with the police chief. But in the end: no, there is no ideal cop. There are the collections of officers that stand for justice with fair and moral application; they aspire to project the concept of an "ideal" cop. JY001 JY002
This article helps bring to light an issue that has been happening in our country for a while now. People have always been discriminated against in our country and that is very wrong, however, up until recently not much had been being done to help combat discrimination in the police force. I would imagine that this type of incident does not happen all that often as we have learned in class that the police force is a brotherhood/sisterhood and fellow officers would never discriminate against one of their own. This article also raises the question of maybe this sort of incident is happening more often than we think and we may just not know about it. People always have their implicit biases that they may not even realize they have but it always present in the way they talk and act. These implicit biases often hurt the person's reputation because they may be avoided because of their biases or maybe not even hired at all. Discrimination is a huge issue within our country and sadly it will not being going away. People in this world discriminate so much and because they do people in this world are getting overlooked and probably could be the best officers in the department but, because there a lesbian, gay, or a women they usually get mistreated and looked upon like they can’t do the job. This goes back to the 20-80 rule because not all officers are like this but, your still going to have officers that think like this. Thats why its big for our generation to learn the right way of how to police. If the new generation can get taught the right way maybe there is a chance then that we can get rid of that 20 percent. If we are going to get there though we need more people like Wildhaber to stand up for themselves and let faculty people know whats going on so that we can single out the people who are doing this. Ciaccio001/001
This article shines a light on a problem that is pretty popular among todays current events. Just like the current issue of there not being enough diversity in police departments, I think this issue comes hand in hand. Promotions should not be biased on who the person is, it should solely be based on the persons ability to act in the position that they are applying for. If someone is qualified to be given the position and has clearly put on the work and has met the criteria required, shouldn't that be enough to get the position? When you start to use race, beliefs, gender, or in this case sexuality to determine who gets a promotion, then you are now no longer giving the position to the most qualified candidate, you are discriminating against those who do not fit the "image" that you believe is fit for the position. Promotions need to be based solely on if the applicant does the job that is required and does it well enough to deserve the promotion they are applying for. It does help to have officers in the department who reflect the community that they serve. America has come a long way in the problem of discrimination, but there is still work to be done. Blackhawks001
Sgt. WIldhaber's sexual orientation has nothing to do with his ability to perform his job. If employees were being passed up for promotions based on their "religious beliefs," we'd never hear the end of it from those promoting the evil anti-gay agenda. St. Louis was way, way ahead of the curve in regards to people of different persuasions as far back as the mid-1960s. It has in fact always been a remarkable example of being open to all kinds of personalities and private lives through its history; the key being people knew what to say to who and how to be thoughtful to everyone and everyone. We were brought up this way. So any problems people are encountering these days in that regard I regard as isolated cases which do need to be addressed but not typical of the way people deal with other people. A persons sexuality should not even come into play when reviewing employment. Just like with his situation I have seen people who are single get passed over for a job because they don't have a family and kids. That to me is unfair a job should go to the most qualified every single time, no excuses. -NIKE001/NIKE002
I think the way the officer was disrespected if absolutely ridiculous. If you go into this field, I don’t think your sexuality should matter as long as you get your job done, and take it all seriously. Just because someone doesn’t agree with the way you live your life, doesn’t mean you can bash on it. When in the workplace, some things just need to be kept to yourself. The police are considered heroes, and the only thing they should be focusing on is whether or not he’s doing his job. He must’ve done well in his interview, the physical and written test, so why should it matter whether he is gay? In a way, it relates to the 20/80 rule because not all cops feel this way, but there’s some that do and show it in their work. Regardless, I feel like he does his job great, especially fighting through being called out on his sexuality. stlblues001, stlblues002
I believe that there is no ideal cop. If a cop can do his job correctly and efficient then they can be considered the ideal cop. Someones sexuality, race, gender, etc. should not matter when deciding if someone if fit for the job or not. This is the problem with this current generation because everyone is judging others or feel that they cannot complete a certain task or are unable to get along with others in the work area because of their race, gender, or sexuality. The ideal cop is someone who can do their job well, while using discretion when needed, and simply just getting the job done without causing trouble in the work place. If an officer can do that, then it does not matter how they define themselves personally. Certainly, not all cops feel the need to disown one of their own because of their sexuality, but the 20% of officers that like to cause 80% of the problems feel the need to start a problem within their own system. I believe that officers should stop worrying about their own and worry about helping the community and serving others when they are in need or they need an officers help with a situation. When a cop goes into the line of duty, they do not know the sexuality of the people they are helping in the community, so why does it matter in the work place? Just because one's sexuality is known doesn't mean other fellow officers should be judging that person. It just means that officer is comfortable within themselves. bball001, bball002
I am actually so tired of police officers or any profession who is deemed "masculine" as not fitting for someone who is gay. People make everything about sex when it comes to a gay person or transgendered person. They have the worst assumptions and label them as less than because people are uncomfortable with themselves. People who are different than you aren't out to get you or do nasty bad things to you. This officer in this article had every right to say he was being discriminated against because he was. The victim here is putting himself out there by publicly announcing the descrimination not only furthering putting his sexuality out there but going against his brothers in blue. For someone who seemed to be at the top of his game getting passed up for promotions is rediculous. If his personality didn't fit because he couldn't do the job that is one things, but to pass him up for a promotion because he was being too gay or needed to tone down that aspect of his life is absurd. As if you ask other officers to calm down how straight they act or come after them for talking about women in a disgraceful way. There is always a double standard. Wildhaber was not expecting special treatment, he went above and beyond as a community liaison, he was showing his character and all he got was being discriminated against. As we have learned in class police officers with a bias or who do not know how to speak with all kinds of members in the community won't do well as a police officer, well same seems applicable to your fellow officers. There's joking around about someone being too much and then there is telling an officer to his face that he won't get to the white unless he changes who he is. But who he is, is what got him this far it is not him who needs to change it's the attitudes of those who work alongside him. Marras002
There is no ideal officer, as long as there is an officer who is in the right state of mind with good intentions who wants to make a difference for every individual then that’s the type of officer that should be in certain positions of power the case for this law suit is clearly earned as passed on this officers testing scores in terms of getting a promotion he had earned it beyond a doubt he meet every expectation he needed such as getting third in ranking for a promotion two years in a row 2014 to 2015. This clearly was an issue that needed to go forth in turning into a law suit as this is decimation no officer should have to change their religion, sexual ordination, or go to a department that expects their race or ethnicity this officer has every right to get a promotion being denied to his own desires outside of the badge is not one of them. St. Lois was wrong for turning the officer based on the fact of him being gay this is not fair or even related to his own job performance This officer has also every chance in the word to be. Even if this officer had a different sexual orientation then officer he could be just as effective in his chain of command he could also be very responsible as if he ranked 3ed two years straight in testing then this officer is putting in the work to be successful in the line of duty. No ideal officer exists as not all two people are the same everyone has different experiences and background in their lives this won’t make anyone perform less or greater but what is shown as he did ranking third did establish that this officer earned his promotion. Eagle002, Eagle001
ReplyDeleteI agree with you because usually when your working in this kind of job settings you can handle a lot. Sometimes when it seems like too much it becomes overwhelming. It had to be something ongoing and occupied by many for him to want to turn it into a lawsuit. He doesn't deserve that type of treatment due to his sexuality. MSSA002
DeleteI think that if this officer was discriminated against it isn't right or professional. We all have our own opinions but when you make rude comments in a professional work area that creates tension. It is hard to patrol the streets and keep people safe with that kind of tension as well as better the community. Police Officers are viewed as role models whether they intend to or not. I personally don't believe in being gay but I don't think that gives anyone a right to discriminate towards someone who is. It takes a lot of mental strength to be an police officer and when you don't have a department that supports you that can make things rally hard. If he has proof that he scored the highest on the promotion test, and evidence the comment was made, he should have a successful case. It raises questions though when the person who made the comment resigned shortly after even though it was for a completely different circumstance. If the officer used the chain of command to handle the situation I think the picking should have been addressed. The main concern for me would be if his "gayness" isn't affecting his work performance he shouldn't have been judged or even commented on. MSSA002
ReplyDeleteI agree with you a hundred percent because it isn't professional at all. Who cares if the guy is gay he is probably one of the best police officers in that department and its just so sad that we have people in the world that mistreat people because of something they can't help. It does take a lot of strength to be a police officer and when they don't back you up it would be extremely hard to be an effective police officer. Im glad this guy stood up for himself hopefully more people stand up for themselves.CRC001,CRC002
DeleteReading an article like this just shows how people still today get mistreated no matter if its their race, sexuality, or even gender for instance a woman. You have these amendments that state equality for stance the fourteenth amendment states it as well as the equality rights amendment. Just makes me mad that people go so long getting treated like this. This is just one case but, there are so many more cases out there that just go unnoticed or the person thats getting treated like this doesn’t stand up and say something. Even the first amendment states that you have the rights of your religion, speech, press and it allows free exercise. People can’t help if there gay or lesbian so you can’t judge people from that. They state that Wildhaber has been on the department since 1994 and that he is a veteran and also saved someone from a burning car. People that meet the standards and requirement of a police officer should be the only thing that matters. People in this world discriminate so much and because they do people in this world are getting overlooked and probably could be the best officers in the department but, because there a lesbian, gay, or a women they usually get mistreated and looked upon like they can’t do the job. This goes back to the 20-80 rule because not all officers are like this but, your still going to have officers that think like this. Thats why its big for our generation to learn the right way of how to police. If the new generation can get taught the right way maybe there is a chance then that we can get rid of that 20 percent. If we are going to get there though we need more people like Wildhaber to stand up for themselves and let faculty people know whats going on so that we can single out the people who are doing this. CRC001,CRC002
ReplyDeleteThis is in turn putting a bad reputation on that police department over one issue of discrimination. Even thou this officer was clearly fit to earn the promotion ranking third in 26 other officers applying for the promotion. This was unfair treatment for a very respectable officer. This can be corrected if the department can make the correct choices to not single an officer out but to put him in position of power because he respectfully had earned the job.
DeleteEagle001 Eagle002
I agree, and this article is troubling to me because if members of the criminal justice system are being mistreated by their own, then members of society will obviously be treated the same way, or even worse than people like Keith Wildhaber. The criminal justice system should be setting the example of fair and equal treatment of all individuals, especially since those are the people that we police each and every day.
Deletegh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
It cannot really be proven if Keith Wildhaber was discriminated against, but that would not be the first time that our society has seen something happen related to discriminating because of sexuality, along with race. In the case of Keith Wildhaber, who placed third in two sets of testing among 26 officers, he said that he was watching all of those around him get promoted while he was remaining in the same place. It would undeniable that this was discrimination because of his sexuality if he had placed first in each of those groups of 26 people, but that was not the case. Keith says that he was told by a superior to “tone down your gayness” or else he would never reach his goal of receiving a promotion. The police force should be the last group of people to be discriminating against any category of people. Our criminal justice system is in charge of protecting each and every person, regardless of race, sexuality, or gender. Situations like this make me wonder just how much bias some of our law enforcement officers and members of the criminal justice system have implanted in their minds, which will immensely affect how they police each situation that they come across. If you want to be successful in this field, all implicit bias needs to go, maximizing performance and fairness to all individuals, even if you do not agree with the life decisions and ways of life that individuals choose for themselves. If the system is treating their own with this disrespect and discrimination, I don’t have high expectations that they are treating members of society any better than they are treating their own people within their departments.
ReplyDeletegh_blackhawks001, gh_blackhawks002
I agree that this article is troubling in the way that it makes you wonder if our criminal justice system is showing fairness to everyone when they cannot even show fairness to the people that work within the system. I agree that the police force should be the last place discriminating against people and it is very troubling to see this type of incident occurring. Implicit bias is a very dangerous and toxic thing that can derail many police forces and officers alike if it is not stomped out and taken care. treating everyone with equality and fairness should be the number one concern for the police force. Pack001, Pack002
DeleteThis is actually my first time reading about something like this. Im guessing this type of discrimination isn't normally an issue for police officers. Either that or it just isn't reported enough. As being a professional in any field, especially this one, why does it matter if someone is gay, straight, lesbian, black, white, latino, whatever. As a police officer you have a lot more important things to worry about other than someones sexuality. With co workers judging or making inappropriate comments about another doesn't make them look good either. The rude comments you think might hurt someone else is actually hurting you with out you even knowing it, giving yourself a bad reputation as well. As far as reading this article, I feel that there is no ideal officer and people should no longer think that that or judge others. As a cop, if you are so bothered by a gay employee, how will you or how are you treating ones like that out on the streets of your community. kt001
ReplyDeleteI agree with you; police officers have a lot more important things to worry about other than someone’s sexuality, and the same goes for their race, religion, and gender. The rude comments definitely are hurting the officer’s own reputation. You also bring up a good point that if a gay employee bothers you, how can you be a cop when the world is filled with people who think differently than you? If that bothers the cop so much, it will probably affect his or her job and how he or she treats gay people. I also hope this discrimination is normally not an issue for officers. Scuba002
DeleteThis article helps bring to light an issue that has been happening in our country for a while now. People have always been discriminated against in our country and that is very wrong, however, up until recently not much had been being done to help combat discrimination in the police force. I would imagine that this type of incident does not happen all that often as we have learned in class that the police force is a brotherhood/sisterhood and fellow officers would never discriminate against one of their own. This article also raises the question of maybe this sort of incident is happening more often than we think and we may just not know about it. People always have their implicit biases that they may not even realize they have but it always present in the way they talk and act. These implicit biases often hurt the person's reputation because they may be avoided because of their biases or maybe not even hired at all. Discrimination is a huge issue within our country and sadly it will not being going away anytime soon if the people with implicit biases do not start to be more understanding and accepting of everyone. As far as answering the question of "is there an ideal officer?" goes, my answer to that question would be that there is no ideal officer. All officers are different in their own way but are also connected through what they do, to say that there is one type of specific officer that should be the "model" officer so to say, is not logical. The criminal justice system is a system of fairness for all and if departments cannot even show fairness to their own employees then how can they be expected to show fairness and justness to the people in their communities. Pack001, Pack002
ReplyDeleteIt is most unfortunate that these ideals are so late arriving. The ideas for true equality and freedom among all sexuality, races, and sexes. And the criminal justice system is unable to produce a model officer, and thus any good officer should be rewarded for their strengths on the job. - AJC001
DeleteThis article brings up a few issues with the criminal justice system and promoting system. Sergeant Wildhaber should be promoted if he proves he has the credentials. If he is exceeding at his job, he deserves to be promoted. I do not believe there is an ideal cop. It is actually better to have diverse officers versus officers that are virtually all the same “ideal cop” because the diversity allows for learning between the officers. If Wildhaber can do his job efficiently and effectively, there should not be a problem when it comes to promotions. The lawsuit also has holes in it. According to the article, the lawsuit says, “Defendant believes plaintiff’s behavior, mannerisms, and/or appearance do not fit the stereotypical norms of what a ‘male’ should be.” That is ridiculous because we have female officers who “do not fit the stereotypical norms of what a “male” should be.” Female officers do just as well, if not better, than male officers. Gender, religion, ethnicities, etc should not be a factor in this. The only factor should be if the officer can do his or her job efficiently and effectively. Gender, religion, and ethnicity should also not affect the hiring process; it should solely be based on whether or not the person has the credentials and skills to do the job well. Scuba002
ReplyDeleteI completely agree. An officer should be promoted on merit, sexuality should play no part in that decision. Police departments should stand as a symbol of fairness in their communities, and this department has failed to do so. What should the gay community think about this? This department has people within it who won't even back gay officers, so why would they go out of their way to protect a gay man?-OKC001
DeleteI agree. If he is still good at his job why does it matter if he likes men or women. It isn't hurting anyone he comes there just like everyone else, to get a pay check. I think the whole thing was blown out of proportion. WS002
DeleteI found this article to be very saddening. As naive of me as it was, I never really thought cops, especially leaders within a department, would discriminate against somebody in this fashion. All police officers have the same job; to protect and serve. The thought that this officer can’t do that as well in a position of command because of his sexuallity is simply preposterous. Being diverse in the police force gives you an edge in certain situations that other officer don’t have. Being a diverse officer on a police force allows them to have insight into certain situations and allows them to do their job better. Having a liaison into the lgbtq community, and every other minority group within this department’s jurisdiction would be extremely helpful to that department, and give them greater insights into the communities they police. Sadly however, because of a few people’s unwarranted biases, this officer will be denied the opportunity to to the best of his abilities, serve and protect his community. No matter where you go certain groups will always face adversity, but because of this officer standing up to his chain of command, which can be a daunting task, other gay officers may not face the same discrimination he had to. The officers in the department that were the perpetrators in all of this should be ashamed of themselves, for treating a brother officer in this fashion. Police officers should always have each other’s backs no matter who they are, and these officers failed to do that.-OKC001
ReplyDeleteI agree OKC001, this article is deeply saddening. This man was discriminated against simply because of his sexuality and no one cared how good of an officer he was. I also was unaware about the discrimination that occurred between officers. I hope that one day police officers can be judged so harshly based on the way the treat civilians rather than their presentation. zmw001
DeleteI believe that the ideal officer is a police officer that works hard to actually change the lives of troubled members of his or her community for the better, however, I do not believe we will ever have the perfect cop. As long as we are using humans to police, we will always have our implicit biases and that can not be changed. It should not matter what an officers race, ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexuality is, as long as they are willing to put in the work and effort to actually positively impact citizens then they are great officers to me. Police officers should not be judged by their appearance or presentation, (so long as they look professional), but they should be judged by their actions and the way they treat civilians. It is upsetting that this officer, Sergeant Wildhaber, was insulted by a St. Louis County Police Board member and held in his place just because of his sexuality, even though his written test scores were superior in all rated categories. This man could have been the best officer in that department, but it does not matter. As long as he was openly gay he would not have been promoted. This just goes to show that implicit bias among police officers does not only affect their relations with the public but it also has a big affect on the relations with officers among the department. zmw001
ReplyDeleteI could not agree more zw001, when you said we will never have the perfect cop. Implicate bias is one of the biggest internal problems that police officers have. The main concern that departments should have about their officers is weather or not they can do their job efficiently and properly. Even if that means not following the law 100% of the time and taking matters into their own hands. A good police officer can actively communicate with anyone and end up settling to an agreement, causing the least amount of problems as possible. Bry001
DeleteInequality. It is a part of life (sadly) and it is virtually everywhere. There is always somebody who considers themselves higher, an individual who will put others down for being different. And when we say that his is everywhere, we mean it. From hospitals, schools, theatres, restaurants, public transportation, officer jobs, mail delivery, and ever the governmental jobs of our governing bodies, which includes law enforcement agencies.
ReplyDeleteIn this article, St. Louis County Police Sgt. Keith Wildhaber is blocked from promotion in repeated occasions due to the fact that he is a homosexual. Personally, I think this a very poor way to run any administration, especially one with the government. An officer’s sex, race, sexuality, or economical status should not affect their right of passage into and through the ranks of a police force. The only thing that should matter in this job is their work ethic and their ability and effort towards improving their job, continuing their job, and their efforts to do well and continue to learn and adapt. Showing promise and care for the community is what matters. When an officer can effectively perform their job, can improve on their abilities and their mistakes, and is constantly becoming a better and smarter officer, said officer deserves the right to be promoted, especially is they show such high testing scores as Sgt. Wildhaber. Not only did the force deny him of his promotion due to his sexuality, they denied what was very much deserved to him. Sgt Wildhaber was scoring in the top three of the officers employed in his agency, yet he was not ever promoted while those around him were. Part of the reformation of our law enforcement habits definitely needs to include a correction of management within the police agencies. Individuals should not be so harshly denied of anything due to their sexuality, and the fact that this is happening is an outrage. We truly have a long way to go to reach equality. - AJC001
I agree with everything you said. We want to reflect the community we represent so that said community is more comfortable and in turn trusts us more. We know that there are people of all walks of life in our community, therefore we should be trying to show it. It's also a different time period. Who cares if an officer is gay? A lot of people have different sexual orientations and it is not something you can judge someone on. As long as you do your job to the best that you can you should be able to excel.
DeleteHootie002
This article definitely caught my attention. Typically police departments have had trouble with diversity in the department in terms of race, but now we are focusing on an individuals sexual orientation. What that St. Louis county board member said to Wildhaber was completely out of hand. Departments should not be the least bit concerned with what ones sexual orientation is, but instead their ability to carry out their duty of serving and protecting the public to maintain peace and order. According to the article, Wildhaber is an excellent candidate for the promotion at hand. He did his job and did it very well, but the board thinks he needs to tone down his gayness in order to receive the promotion? The only problem a homosexual officer would have is receiving rude behavior and comments from civilians they are dealing with. The officer could also have some sort of implicate bias against certain people because of their sexual orientation. Although, I could not see these two things preventing an officer from doing their job properly. It seems as if Keith Wildhaber is the perfect example. He is a homosexual and proves to excel at his job, well deserving of that promotion. Overall, police departments should not be focused on sexual orientation of an individuals, but instead their background history, experience, and skill level. Bry001
ReplyDeletei agree with you completely. the department should not have been worried about this mans sexuality. I find this ridiculous that they have to to call this man out and even though this man is great at his job. i can't believe that they would not give him a promotion because he was gay.evo001
DeleteI love how you mentioned that an officer should be judged by his background history, experience, and skill level instead of his sexual orientation. I do not see, as you said, how this effects whether or not an officer does his job properly. Not saying that this is the case, but say there are other officers on the department that are a part of the LGBT community and are now afraid to come out in fear of not reaching the job standards. I know everyone says "It's 2017, what is the matter?" But it is true, as a police department that hires people of all walks of life, this shouldn't stop anyone from receiving the same opportunities. Wildhaber reached all of the standards needed for this promotion and it's upsetting that his sexuality is preventing him from the offer. behappy001
DeleteI agree that this officer was treated with so much disrespect. The sexual preference should not determine the way a officer is treated on the job. I also agree that a police officers sexual agenda should not prevent him from getting opportunities.
DeleteKLICK001
every officer is and have their own way to police. as long as that officer can show passion to his or her community. Officer are look at a lot and watched by everyone in the community they serve. In this article it shows an officer that is gay being told to calm down. To me this is concidered discrimination. Which police departments nowadays are trying to get away from. THis officer that was discriminated against says he scored high on his promotion test. Then a very hateful comment was told to him and he wasn't given the promotion. It takes a lot to be an officer that is different and it makes it harder when the department doesn't back you.
ReplyDeleteevo001 this one is mine i forgot to add it
DeleteYou made a good point on how a hostile and discriminatory leadership environment can cause an erosion of the morale of the department, not to mention an erosion of trust in both departmental and civic leadership. You also brought up that police are watched by the community, this is why professionalism in law enforcement is key. CoolGuy001
DeleteI agree with you when you say that it takes a lot to be an officer that is different. In general it's harder for people that are different. If you don't fit the social "norm" then you are treated differently, which isn't right. At the end of the day we all bleed red. -dicaprio001
DeleteThere are approximately nine million members of the LGBT community in America today. Being that it is 2017, I believe that being a part of this community is just as common as being heterosexual. I understand that many people have many different viewpoints about this and it's important to express these viewpoints, but I disagree with what is going on in this article. Keith Wildhaber claims a former St. Louis County Police Board member told him to "tone down his gayness" if he ever wanted to be promoted. As i was reading the article, I was caught between two different motives to turn down Wildhaber for the promotion. This is because it said that his written performance reviews showed that he "exceeded standards" or is "superior" in all rated categories. Because of this, either the department truly turned him down because of his sexuality and so they made his reviews outstanding to make up for it or he simply lacked a critical trait for the job. In 2014, as the article mentions, a justice department report suggested that the department create a diversity council to advise commanders on recruitment including lesbian, gay, bisexual, etc. The department has not acted on the recommendation. On the other hand, county police detective Joe Patterson says that the St. Louis County Police Association is actively recruiting LGBT members and the minority to serve on steering committees in order to bring forth not only concerns but ideas on how to improve the police association. The department also appointed Capt. Angela Coonce as LGBT liason, which advocates for the transgender community and their policies. As we are taught in class by Dr. White, there is always a bad apple that makes all the others look bad, in this case the entire board. As professionals and members of any community, it's important that to understand that everyone comes from all different walks of like, different sexual preferences, and different experiences. I believe 110% that if an individual brings what it takes to the table, with the right experience, performance, and mentality they are fit for any job. Implicit bias within the department is definitely shown within this article, and it has moved throughout the public too. I think that if Sergeant Wildhaber has what it takes to be promoted he should be offered the job, regardless of his sexuality. behappy001
ReplyDeleteThe article covers the alleged refusal of a promotion for a qualified gay police officer. In the article, the officer in question was informed that he should "tone down the gay" or else he would not be eligible for a promotion that he was qualified for. This article highlights the ideas of professionalism and equal opportunity in police departments. If the officer was denied a promotion based only on his sexuality then that would have been a failure of the police department to maintain an equal opportunity environment. Promotions should be given based on merit and service record and not on a personal trait that does not negatively impact performance in the field. If the officer were told that he should "tone down the gay" then that would have been a failure of that individual's professional conduct by phrasing it that way. Anyone going into policing or any form of career that involves law enforcement or leadership should know that they are the ones that set the standard for everyone they are in charge of. If any officer of the law, especially one in a leadership position, engages in unprofessional conduct of any kind then he sets a negative example for all the people he is charged with to reflect. By using phrases like "tone down the gay" an officer erodes both his professional image, and the professional image of the department that he represents. CoolGuy001
ReplyDeleteIn class we talk often about how our police department should reflect the community. We usually use this in the context of color, saying that when we are representing a city with a high minority population that we should have a high number of minority officers as well. It would make sense to not only try to look like our community but to be more like them. Hiring gay, lesbian, and trans officers is a good idea. These officers would be able to represent areas of the community that often times feel left out. In Sgt. Wildhaber's case he was treated and spoken to unfairly. In a classroom setting you would hopefully never hear a professor say "If you tone down your gay you might get a better grade" therefore it shouldn't be okay to say these things in the workforce. It is 2017, gay marriage is legal. More people with different sexual orientations are stepping out than ever before now that it is so much more widely accepted. There's no reason that comment should be tolerated. Unfortunately it seems like a he-said she-said type of situation. There is no ideal cop, just like there is no ideal human being. Everyone is different, no two people are exactly the same. Why should there be a specific way a cop must look or live to qualify him or her for higher positions?
ReplyDeleteHootie002
I would have to agree with the end of you comment, there is no ideal cop. That is very true because it takes a special kind of person to even become a cop, not matter how they look or are "different" in any shape or belief. A cop is someone who works as a person to serve and protect, doesn't matter who you are just as long as you can do the job. Flannel002
DeleteThis article made me think of a comedy television show that I watch. The show is called Brooklyn Nine Nine. It is obviously a detective show that is set in Brooklyn in modern day times. How it connects to this article is that the Chief in the precinct is gay. Throughout the show you hear about how the Chief had a very hard time moving up the ranks because he is gay. I know that this is just a television show but it relates to this post so well. I can see it being hard for minorities to move up but from what I've noticed lately is that most departments are looking for the minorities compare to the majorities. I couldn't tell you if the minorities just aren't applying or if they are not completely applicable to be hired but it seems that most departments, at least around here are looking for different types of officers. What I mean by different types of officers is that they could be gay, black, white, female, male, pink, purple or anything different from the average white male fresh out of a university. But this was a very interesting article because I never really thought about how being gay would have an influence on a person in the criminal justice world. Flannel002
ReplyDeleteIn this case Mr. Wildhaber was treated wrong because of his sexual orientation. I feel like it was very unprofessional for the other officer to say what he said to him. BY him saying he should tone down his gayness opened the door of judgement. Not just by one officer but, by the whole department. Why does it matter what his sexual orientation is, as logn as he is getting his work done it shouldn't matter. I feel like he did a real good thing by pressing charges becasue it is now 2017 and people are still facing discrimination just because of their sexual orientation. Being in Mr. Wildhaber they took it a step further and made it so that he would not get promoted athis job. They were messing with his money now. Then when confronted the other officer said he didn't say it, i feel like it is shady. He didn't think that he would go this far to press charges.I would have NEVER thought something like this would happen in such a strong department like policing. WS002
ReplyDeleteThis just goes to show that the criminal justice system still needs some work. A officers sexual prefference should not determine how they are treated at there job. This officer was obviously a decent police officer by the ranks he was given and he still is treated so disrespectfully. The officer that told him to tone down his gayness really needs to hide his personal biases better when at work. If departments want to diversify their squads and relate with the community they really need to outshine the 20% percent of these officers creating 80% of the negative news articles.
ReplyDeleteKLICK001
Mr. Wildhaber was treated very wrong in this situation all because of his sexual orientation? Your sexual orientation has nothing to do with your job nor should it affect the way he's treated at his job. As someone who goes to work every single day to make sure our grass is greener I could care less who he is interested in sexually. It's sad today that gay's rights and wellness are not treated the same as straight people. WE all bleed RED. No one is better than the next just because of who they are interested in sexually. At the end of the day there is no "ideal cop". You are who you are and if you are someone who is interested in making the world a better place and your heart is in it, it doesn't matter what your sexual orientation is. I think diversity is better, and causes for better police officers. -dicaprio001
ReplyDeleteI think there is reason enough, after what's read, to suggest an issue of discrimination. Other posts have spoke about the need for departments to "mirror" the community in a sense, and I have t agree. Community relations is a bedrock of policing. Not only as a policing force, but as an organization, there needs to be an essence of fairness and equal opportunity. I understand the lack of acceptance for the gay community, and I'm not exactly an advocate, but I do however believe that a person has the right to make their own preferences so long as it does not interfere with the parameters of law. More importantly, an officer that is well within the standards required for advancement, has served well to include awards, and has developed a good position on the force shouldn't be close to being passed up for consideration. Sounds to me like you need to be boys with someone up the chain of command to get where you want to go, as suggested by Saracino's actions with the police chief. But in the end: no, there is no ideal cop. There are the collections of officers that stand for justice with fair and moral application; they aspire to project the concept of an "ideal" cop. JY001 JY002
ReplyDeleteThis article helps bring to light an issue that has been happening in our country for a while now. People have always been discriminated against in our country and that is very wrong, however, up until recently not much had been being done to help combat discrimination in the police force. I would imagine that this type of incident does not happen all that often as we have learned in class that the police force is a brotherhood/sisterhood and fellow officers would never discriminate against one of their own. This article also raises the question of maybe this sort of incident is happening more often than we think and we may just not know about it. People always have their implicit biases that they may not even realize they have but it always present in the way they talk and act. These implicit biases often hurt the person's reputation because they may be avoided because of their biases or maybe not even hired at all. Discrimination is a huge issue within our country and sadly it will not being going away. People in this world discriminate so much and because they do people in this world are getting overlooked and probably could be the best officers in the department but, because there a lesbian, gay, or a women they usually get mistreated and looked upon like they can’t do the job. This goes back to the 20-80 rule because not all officers are like this but, your still going to have officers that think like this. Thats why its big for our generation to learn the right way of how to police. If the new generation can get taught the right way maybe there is a chance then that we can get rid of that 20 percent. If we are going to get there though we need more people like Wildhaber to stand up for themselves and let faculty people know whats going on so that we can single out the people who are doing this. Ciaccio001/001
ReplyDeleteThis article shines a light on a problem that is pretty popular among todays current events. Just like the current issue of there not being enough diversity in police departments, I think this issue comes hand in hand. Promotions should not be biased on who the person is, it should solely be based on the persons ability to act in the position that they are applying for. If someone is qualified to be given the position and has clearly put on the work and has met the criteria required, shouldn't that be enough to get the position? When you start to use race, beliefs, gender, or in this case sexuality to determine who gets a promotion, then you are now no longer giving the position to the most qualified candidate, you are discriminating against those who do not fit the "image" that you believe is fit for the position. Promotions need to be based solely on if the applicant does the job that is required and does it well enough to deserve the promotion they are applying for. It does help to have officers in the department who reflect the community that they serve. America has come a long way in the problem of discrimination, but there is still work to be done. Blackhawks001
ReplyDeleteSgt. WIldhaber's sexual orientation has nothing to do with his ability to perform his job. If employees were being passed up for promotions based on their "religious beliefs," we'd never hear the end of it from those promoting the evil anti-gay agenda. St. Louis was way, way ahead of the curve in regards to people of different persuasions as far back as the mid-1960s. It has in fact always been a remarkable example of being open to all kinds of personalities and private lives through its history; the key being people knew what to say to who and how to be thoughtful to everyone and everyone. We were brought up this way. So any problems people are encountering these days in that regard I regard as isolated cases which do need to be addressed but not typical of the way people deal with other people. A persons sexuality should not even come into play when reviewing employment. Just like with his situation I have seen people who are single get passed over for a job because they don't have a family and kids. That to me is unfair a job should go to the most qualified every single time, no excuses. -NIKE001/NIKE002
ReplyDeleteI think the way the officer was disrespected if absolutely ridiculous. If you go into this field, I don’t think your sexuality should matter as long as you get your job done, and take it all seriously. Just because someone doesn’t agree with the way you live your life, doesn’t mean you can bash on it. When in the workplace, some things just need to be kept to yourself. The police are considered heroes, and the only thing they should be focusing on is whether or not he’s doing his job. He must’ve done well in his interview, the physical and written test, so why should it matter whether he is gay?
ReplyDeleteIn a way, it relates to the 20/80 rule because not all cops feel this way, but there’s some that do and show it in their work.
Regardless, I feel like he does his job great, especially fighting through being called out on his sexuality. stlblues001, stlblues002
I believe that there is no ideal cop. If a cop can do his job correctly and efficient then they can be considered the ideal cop. Someones sexuality, race, gender, etc. should not matter when deciding if someone if fit for the job or not. This is the problem with this current generation because everyone is judging others or feel that they cannot complete a certain task or are unable to get along with others in the work area because of their race, gender, or sexuality. The ideal cop is someone who can do their job well, while using discretion when needed, and simply just getting the job done without causing trouble in the work place. If an officer can do that, then it does not matter how they define themselves personally. Certainly, not all cops feel the need to disown one of their own because of their sexuality, but the 20% of officers that like to cause 80% of the problems feel the need to start a problem within their own system. I believe that officers should stop worrying about their own and worry about helping the community and serving others when they are in need or they need an officers help with a situation. When a cop goes into the line of duty, they do not know the sexuality of the people they are helping in the community, so why does it matter in the work place? Just because one's sexuality is known doesn't mean other fellow officers should be judging that person. It just means that officer is comfortable within themselves. bball001, bball002
ReplyDeleteI am actually so tired of police officers or any profession who is deemed "masculine" as not fitting for someone who is gay. People make everything about sex when it comes to a gay person or transgendered person. They have the worst assumptions and label them as less than because people are uncomfortable with themselves. People who are different than you aren't out to get you or do nasty bad things to you. This officer in this article had every right to say he was being discriminated against because he was. The victim here is putting himself out there by publicly announcing the descrimination not only furthering putting his sexuality out there but going against his brothers in blue. For someone who seemed to be at the top of his game getting passed up for promotions is rediculous. If his personality didn't fit because he couldn't do the job that is one things, but to pass him up for a promotion because he was being too gay or needed to tone down that aspect of his life is absurd. As if you ask other officers to calm down how straight they act or come after them for talking about women in a disgraceful way. There is always a double standard. Wildhaber was not expecting special treatment, he went above and beyond as a community liaison, he was showing his character and all he got was being discriminated against. As we have learned in class police officers with a bias or who do not know how to speak with all kinds of members in the community won't do well as a police officer, well same seems applicable to your fellow officers. There's joking around about someone being too much and then there is telling an officer to his face that he won't get to the white unless he changes who he is. But who he is, is what got him this far it is not him who needs to change it's the attitudes of those who work alongside him. Marras002
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