LANSING, Mich. (WILX) – June is pride month, a worldwide celebration that began as Gay Pride Week in 1970, marking the first anniversary of the violent police raid at a New York City gay bar.
That historic confrontation has evolved over the years into communication between the Lansing Police Department (LPD) and the LGBTQ community.
Tori Brooks is a seven-year veteran of the Lansing Police Force and is openly gay. She has been a driving force in educating her fellow officers about the mental hurdles some people in the gay community deal with, especially when encountering a badge.
“Maybe they truly did not know that maybe something they were saying could be hurtful or upsetting to somebody else,” Officer Brooks said.
Educating her colleagues about LGBTQ names and gender pronouns to take the mental anguish out of a police encounter isn’t lost on her boss, Lansing Police Chief Ellery Sosebee.
“So anybody that comes and champions that and is willing to be the face of, not only LPD, but the gay community is something very honorable,” Chief Sosebee said.
Chief Sosebee’s proactive approach to building a bridge with Lansing’s gay community began two years ago during the pandemic.
Dozens of officers took part in a week of sensitivity training.
“We wanted to make sure the LGBTQ+ community understood that we’re sensitive to their concerns,” said Sosebee.
Mental health concerns for the LGBTQ community include discrimination, homophobia, and transphobia. All might be contributing factors to a survey done by the Trevor Project, which said LGBTQ people are incarcerated at three times the rate of the general population.
Linda Sarnelli is chairperson of Suits And The City, a networking organization that promotes the interests of the LGBTQ community in mid-Michigan.
Her group led the sensitivity training, which covered everything from terminology to traffic stops. It was an open line of communication, all about raising awareness. “We also talked about the fact that there’s a higher proportion of mental illness among transgender people, partly perhaps because of the stigma,” Sarnelli said.
She speaks from experience, and Linda Sarnelli is a transgender female.
Along with raising awareness, Sarnelli said the sensitivity training revealed just how many members of the LPD are also members of the gay community, like Officer Tori Brooks.
“Sometimes openly gay people feel more comfortable talking with someone that identifies with them,” said Brooks. Whether it’s fighting crime or fighting the stigma of being part of the LGBTQ community, Officer Brooks has a simple message.
“I just want people to remember that we’re no different than anybody else,” Brooks said.
The sensitivity training, developed by Suits And The City for the Lansing Police Department, is available for other organizations as well.
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