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Australian Federal Police - Platypus Journal/Magazine |
Taking diversity seriously
As part of the AFP's Gay and Lesbain Police Employees Network, Education and Training and Equity and Diversity are finalising the content of a training course for AFP personnel Australia-wide who are interested in becoming Gay and Lesbian Contact Officers.
The course aims to assist regions in implementing the contact officer concept, after successful trials were carried out in Canberra in 1996.
GALPEN's role is to provide assistance to gay and lesbian personnel by providing peer support and confidential assistance, as well as identifying any workplace pactices which are discriminatory towards gay and lesbian personnel. It also acts as a point of contact for members of the community with gay or lesbain issues.
These issues were examined recently by Melbourne-based Criminology student Adrian Cherney, whose thesis, Gay and lesbain issues in policing: The experiences of gay and lesbian personnel in the Australian Federal Police, explores and assesses such experiences, in light of theories about homophobia and fheterosexism within police organisations. He also discusses the predominantly masculine culture within the AFP, and the positive changes being mad ethrough equity and diversity programs.
The following article is an abridged version of Mr Cherney's thesis.
Historically, relationships between the police and lesbian and gay communities have been far from harmonious or cooperative.
Australian research indicates that lesbians and gay men who have been victims of crime are often reluctant to report incidents to the police, because of concern about police attitudes towards homosexuality.
Disconcertingly, lesbians and gay men have reported harassment and violence, including verbal abuse, threats, physical and sexual assaults, at the hands of police themselves (Australian Law Reform Commission 1995; Baird, Mason and Purcell 1994; GLAD 1994; PLGLC 1997).
Intolerance has also been reflected in the negative treatment of lesbian and gay police. Evidence suggests they can experience a range of prejudicial behaviour and discriminatory practices in the workplace.
However, other reports suggest tolerance and acceptance, with some police refusing to recognise any difference among their fellow members as a failing (Burke 1993, 1994; Jones 1996; Leinen 1993; Miller 1995).
Police jurisdictions have not remained passive in responding to the needs of the lesbian/gay community, nor to their own lesbian and gay members.
This also has been reflected in responses to other diversity issues relating to ethnicity, race and gender. This can be regarded as a recognition of the fact that police jurisdictions need to be reflective of, and responsive to, the diverse nature of the communities they serve.
The AFP's attention has been drawn to diversity issues through reviews that have indicated its occupational culture has the capacity to encourage offensive behaviour, particularly towards women and minority groups.
For example, in 1995, Carmel Niland and Associates carried out an audit of the AFP's Equal Opportunity Program. It reported that the ability to meet program objectives was poor, with the AFP's organisational culture producing "a climate conducive to sexual and racial harassment" (AFP 1996a: pg 7).
Niland and Associates found AFP occupational culture to be heavily masculinised, devaluing the job competence and ability of female members, antagonistic towards quotas for racial minorities, and lacking respect for individual differences. The conclusion was that the climate within the AFP was not one which encouraged diversity in the workforce.
The Australian Law Reform Commission revealed in 1995 that the AFP's relationship with the lesbian/gay community in the ACT was characterised by hostility and mistrust.
The commission revealed evidence of antipathy towards gays by AFP officers and a reluctance among the lesbian/gay community to report incidents of victimisation, because of an impression of the AFP as homophobic.
The commission also reported that gay and lesbian AFP personnel experienced forms of harassment, forcing them to hide their sexual orientation at work, or face the possibility of discrimination.
In response to these inquiries, the AFP established an Equity and Diversity unit, with responsibility for the development, implementation and coordination of an Equity and Diversity Program.
The overriding aim of the program was to instil attitudes and practices which allowed space for individual differences in gender, sexuality, ethnicity, language, cultural background and disabilities, and which were not distorted by inappropriate assumptions or stereotypes about particular community groups (see AFP 1996b).
The emphasis on targeting the needs of gay men and lesbians as a component of the AFP's Equity and Diversity Program was illustrated by the development of a Gay and Lesbian Contact Officer Scheme and a Gay and Lesbian Police Employees Network, known as GALPEN.
In 1996, ACT Region trialed a Gay and Lesbian Contact Officer Scheme.
The success of the scheme led to its permanent establishment — which is currently underway.
Its main focus was changing perceptions within the ACT lesbian/gay community of the AFP, by providing a channel of communication for reporting relevant crimes, and demonstrating a supportive police presence (such as by attending gay and lesbian community events).
The scheme was also concerned with providing peer support to gay and lesbian members; educating colleagues about gay and lesbian issues; and helping to modify the AFP's training environment to improve service delivery and change the AFP culture (Severs 1996).
Evaluation revealed a moderate level of support internally, with an increased understanding among police officers of issues affecting lesbians and gays in the ACT (AFP 1996d; Severs 1996).
Recognising the value of the ACT contact officer scheme, other AFP regions across Australia expressed interest in expanding the concept (AFP 1996d). This led to the establishment of GALPEN, which was fully endorsed by the AFP's National Management Team and sponsored by AFP Commissioner Mick Palmer.
GALPEN aims to provide peer support, to promote awareness of the diversity of AFP personnel both within the organisation and the wider community, to provide a contact point with the lesbian/gay community, to collect and disseminate relevant information, and network with other similar state, national, and international organisations (AFP 1996b: 31-32).
In the context of providing protection against discrimination and an avenue through which action can be taken, section 36A (3) of the AFP Act 1979 outlaws discrimination upon the basis of sexual preference, embodying Equal Employment Opportunity principles as stipulated for all Commonwealth government agencies (AFP 1996a; 1997).
The AFP's policy program to address gay and lesbian issues acknowledges that, both externally and internally, these issues are relevant to its occupational environment.
However, while the AFP may profess to be gay-affirmative at the policy level, the filtering of this official policy into the workplace environment has to be considered.
The experiences of the AFP's gay and lesbian personnel provide one basis upon which the efficacy of this response can be evaluated.
This section reports and analyses interview results from a project which explored the experiences of lesbian and gay police.
There are many methodological difficulties in conducting such research, owing to the fact that many lesbians and gay men conceal or ‘closet' themselves in the workplace — that is, they hide their sexual orientation from colleagues to appear heterosexual.
This makes their identification and selection for research purposes difficult.
Members of the AFP's GALPEN, as well as Gay and Lesbian contact officers, were the main avenue through which interviewees were recruited. As such, 12 women and five men were interviewed.
Due to the limited number of male interviewees, the research may fail to adequately capture the experiences of gay men in the AFP.
Interviewees expressed a range of intrinsic and extrinsic motivations for joining the AFP. Among the motivations disclosed was the desire to fulfil a life long ambition, job flexibility and lifestyle changes. However, despite these motivations, a number of lesbian and gay members reported being apprehensive about their decision to enter the AFP.
Respondents who had recognised and openly identified themselves as gay or lesbian before joining were mindful that other members would possibly react negatively if their sexual orientation became known:
"I was concerned about how the issue of my sexuality would be dealt with. This feeling was related to general social attitudes about gay people, but I was particularly aware of the negative attitude of the police towards gay people" (male respondent).
"I was apprehensive about joining, it was a paramilitary organisation and I knew that being gay would not be accepted. I also knew lesbians who were already in the job and they were closeted due to attitudes in the AFP" (female respondent).
A limited number of respondents reported no conscious apprehension relating to their acceptance in the workplace. However, they had been aware of the negative value likely to be placed upon their sexual identity. Not only had they anticipated some adverse reaction should they be ‘discovered', but they had been aware of the need to ‘develop an act to fit in'.
Very few respondents reported being subject to any form of direct hostility or vilification arising from their sexual orientation.
The following experiences are among the few incidents disclosed during the research that illustrated overt intolerance of, and hostility towards homosexuality.
"At happy hour I was told, ‘I know you're a poofter, I won't have a poofter work with me, go out and get yourself a girlfriend'." (Male respondent).
"I remember being addressed by a superintendent where the issue of my sexuality was raised, he stated ‘now about your sexuality', from then on the conversation just deteriorated. When I work in [section], certain members would come in and make snide remarks about being a lesbian and make reference to what the job is coming to." (Female respondent).
All respondents reported experiencing incidents that were more indirect, subtle, surreptitious and covert in nature, originating dominantly in rumours and innuendo, with the gay and lesbian community the target of verbal denigration:
"I've heard general comments made about other gay male members . . . they're typically degraded . . . in any job involving gay people, their sexuality is commented upon in a degrading way . . . I hear from close colleagues how other members refer to me as a ‘dirty lesbian', however people will not openly confront you, it's always done behind your back." (Female respondent).
"Nothing's ever done directly, it's usually indirect, like often by coincidence you'll overhear things, or calls are made out across the room. Typically they involve reference to homosexual acts made in a degrading way. It's always done behind your back." (Female respondent).
Some interviewees saw such behaviour as part of the job, that it had to be ‘put up with', and that one could either condition oneself through ignoring it and ‘getting on with their job', or confront the behaviour. The latter course was perceived as possibly provoking direct hostile incidents.
"In the context of working with other male members, you're going to hear certain types of jokes, innuendo and derogative remarks. You condition yourself to ignore these sort of things rather than taking them on." (Male respondent).
"When hearing comments directed to other gay members I feel I'm unable to respond due to fear of either outing the individual or confirming what other members suspect. Responding can have adverse consequences."(Female respondent).
While there was no indication that lesbians and gay men in the AFP were subject to systematic or entrenched forms of intolerance or bias, responses do indicate some animosity towards their identity status.
The majority of participants described their experiences in the AFP as ‘fairly positive', with reported examples of anti-homosexual sentiment being regarded as isolated episodes.
However, a number of interviewees referred to the existence of a ubiquitous group within the AFP's occupational culture termed the ‘old guard' or ‘boys club' which encouraged and supported negative attitudes towards lesbians and gay men, with other minority groups also the target of their animosity.
Respondents reported a perceived necessity to self-censor or ‘closet' themselves in the workplace — concealing their sexual identity from work colleagues.
Rationalisations originated in an awareness that the AFP's occupational culture was intolerant of homosexuality, and fear associated with the uncertainty of how others would respond if they became aware of the individual's sexuality. This pressure to conceal their sexual identity was reported as impacting upon the participant's mental health and workplace relationships.
"I feared being victimised if I came out. I was aware of the boys' club mentality that existed, that homosexuality was not accepted. I was aware of other gay people who had had negative experiences. I also feared losing existing friends. I thought they wouldn't like me if they found out and I feared the possibility of being denied opportunities, so I remained closeted for some time." (Female respondent).
"Concealment was exhausting, it mentally takes up much of your energy and attention. You are constantly worried that some thing you say or do will be interpreted correctly, you're worried you'll be picked, that they will see through your disguise." (Male respondent).
Lesbian and gay AFP members who were quite open about their sexual identity in the workplace reported that they had received positive responses from colleagues when their sexual identity had become known, which they reported as surprising because they had expected negative responses. Significantly, participants' perceptions of their merit and authority constantly featured in these responses, with this being conceived as mediating the success of self disclosure, overriding or transcending the issue of their gay or lesbian identity.
"For me, coming out was liberating and dead easy once I reached a certain point. Now I can just be myself, I can have telephone conversations with my partner and work colleagues can hear and I don't have to care. It's made me more like one of the boys at work in that now I am able to participate in the life of the office without being afraid, I found myself almost like a celebrity. I'm able to participate much more openly in the office, people actually seek you out when you think they won't even eat lunch with you.
"It's put me on a different plane of expectation at work, colleagues see me in a different light. The reaction was surprising, I did expect a negative reaction, however I'm sure my professionalism has assisted in others overlooking that I'm gay and accepted me on my merit." (Male respondent).
"My experiences in coming out in the AFP were fairly positive . . . I chose carefully who I told...I think what helped was that I had proved my merit so there was less of a focus upon personality issues." (Female respondent).
What was particularly poignant in the experiences of lesbian AFP personnel was the mediating effect of their gender upon the attitudes they faced in the workplace. Female respondents reported confronting sexist attitudes that were directed mainly at their gender:
"A lot is said about being female. I don't think there are any extra obstacles to being a lesbian because I've heard men make fun of a woman for just being female, just as much as they will make fun of a woman for being a lesbian. It's automatically assumed that men can cope with the job, that a woman has to be tested and prove she can cope. I've had to put up with verbal abuse because of being female. As soon as a woman is put in charge the first thing the men say is ‘who did she sleep with'. I've never seen any female promoted that hasn't had some sort of connotation attached to her promotion." (Female respondent).
"I constantly hear males say about a highly ranked female is that she's got there on her back. They're only seen as token. Women in the AFP face a number of problems, and male members can be very degrading to women. In the work environment women are seen as only acceptable in those female type jobs such as typing etc, and were often not considered for job promotion." (Female respondent).
Both GALPEN and the AFP's Equity and Diversity Program were perceived by respondents as indicating that the organisation was gay affirmative in policy, with both initiatives ‘recognising that lesbians and gay men exist in the AFP'.
Both were perceived as fulfilling a range of important needs, with the schemes regarded as having flow-on effects in other areas.
"It provides a support network, provides support which is connected to mental health issues, provides protection and support for those coming out. It indicates that the AFP is representative of the general population and recognises the existence of gay and lesbian officers and acknowledges their existence . . . indicates that those coming out in the AFP are accepted . . . it illustrates that the AFP is a progressive organisation." (Female respondent referring to GALPEN).
The provision of peer support was recognised as being of particular value to new gay and lesbian members. Reflecting on their experiences and apprehensions, interviewees made reference to how supportive a GALPEN would have been.
"I'm aware that other officers are apprehensive about being gay in the AFP and that those new members who are gay or lesbian face great problems. This is where GALPEN plays an important role." (Female respondent).
"It lets people know that if you are gay or lesbian you have got support and that people who have come out are not going to be discriminated against. It tells those who are not gay or lesbian that we are normal people, breaks down stereotypes, that there's no need to be afraid of us . . . I never knew there were any gay or lesbians out there when I joined . . . It would have been nice to know that there was someone out there like myself." (Female respondent).
The introduction of the Equity and Diversity Program and other associated EEO policies were considered important indicators of the AFP's commitment to addressing a range of educational issues and unacceptable workplace practices.
However, reference was made to the existence of the ‘boys club' or ‘old guard' as having the potential to undermine benefits from such policy changes.
Participants expressed concern that such policies had limited capacity to change the mind-set that pervaded the ‘old guard' or ‘boys club': the threat of ‘the big stick', could compel behavioural change but leave attitudes unchecked.
"There is value in addressing the high degree of ignorance that exists. You have to start somewhere and E and D programs contribute to desensitising members against the influence of the boys' club. Part of the boys' club will always be with the AFP, and you cannot push change down their throats, because the old boys club don't want to change, so you have to do it slowly and let them absorb it — E and D policies allow you to do this.
"Once they are aware of E and D it will stop some forms of discrimination. While the ‘old boys club' may not agree because they are set in their ways, they will respond to authority and abide by the legislation." (Female respondent referring to the AFP's Equity and Diversity Program).
"The policies will force people to make changes. People will realise that practices that occurred in the past are no longer acceptable. However people may be forced to say and do the right thing, but attitudes may not have changed." (Female respondent referring to the AFP's Equity and Diversity Program).
The overall effect of the AFP's Equity and Diversity Program and the associated legislative and policy initiatives were judged as having some qualitative impact upon its occupational culture. Some participants felt that attitudes towards diversity had changed since they first joined — citing the attitudes of newer recruits. However it is hard to determine whether this change was a direct result of equity initiatives.
Changing social attitudes and the increasing acceptance of gays and lesbians also featured in the interviewees' impressions. Some participants conceded that the change process would be slow, with certain areas of the AFP's organisational culture particularly resistant to reform.
"It's a step in the right direction. I have found among new members and some older members that they are more accepting of minorities. Originally when I joined, there was a white anglo culture where people were treated differently on the basis of their skin or sexuality.
"However there has been a definite change with the shift in management policy, hence it's important that it be supported. However I don't have confidence in middle management supporting it, but as they leave and others move up in the ranks, attitudes and practise will change. But still there exists the dinosaurs who believe in the old way of doing things." (Female respondent).
"A new generation is coming in and replacing the old dinosaurs who are leaving. They are being replaced with people who have got positive and tolerant attitudes towards gays because they have come across gays in their environment. Because the dinosaurs never did, gays were always closeted." (Male respondent).
The AFP's Equity and Diversity program and GALPEN verify that the organisation recognises and is responsive to accommodating differences among its employees.
The Gay and Lesbian Contact Officer Scheme has a similar effect relating to the wider community, and interviews undertaken with lesbian and gay AFP personnel confirm this.
An important lesson highlighted by the interview data is that despite policies to eliminate intolerant behaviour and practices within the workplace, entrenched residual opinions can still prevail (such as respondent references to the attitudes of the ‘old guard' or ‘boys club').
While such opinions may be suppressed through the threat of official sanctions, they can linger below the surface.
While many issues have been omitted from this paper, it does confirm that the AFP has recently made significant attempts to rectify apparent problems relating to diversity issues.
This work arose from the author's Masters thesis in Criminology at the University of Melbourne.
The author would like to thank the AFP, and all gay and lesbian personnel who graciously put aside their time to participate in the research. He is particularly thankful to Federal Agent Alan Scott who assisted in initiating interviews and contacts.
Australian Federal Police (1996a) Australian Federal Police Annual Report 1995-96. Australian Government Publishing Service, Canberra.
Australian Federal Police (1996b) Equity and Diversity Program: 1996-2000. AFP Equity and Diversity Unit, Canberra.
Australian Federal Police (1996c) Gay and Lesbian Police Employees Network/ Contact Officers. Paper for the Australian and New Zealand Equal Employment Opportunity in Policing Conference, Melbourne, May 1996.
Australian Federal Police (1996d) Australian Federal Police Gay and Lesbian Police Employees Network. Minute to the National Management Team September 26, AFP, Canberra.
Australian Federal Police (1997) National Corporate Development Initiatives: People Development, Unpublished AFP Policy Document.
Australian Law Reform Commission (1995) Under the Spotlight: Complaints Against the AFP and NCA. Issue Paper 16, Australian Law Reform Commission.
Baird, B, Mason, K, & Purcell, I (1994) The Police and You, Lesbian and Gay Community Action, Adelaide.
Burke, M (1993) Coming Out of the Blue: British Police Officers Talk About Their Lives in the Job as Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals. Capsules, London.
Burke, M (1994) Homosexuality as Deviance: The Case of the Gay Police Officer, British Journal of Criminology, vol 34, no 2, pp 192-203.
GLAD (Gay Men & Lesbian Against Discrimination) (1994) Not a Day Goes By: Report on the GLAD Survey into Discrimination and Violence Against Lesbians and Gay Men in Victoria, GLAD , Melbourne.
Jones, M. (1996) Gay Cops Speak Out, Melbourne Star Observer, April 12, pp 1,3.
Leinen, S (1993) Gay Cops, Rutchers University Press, New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Lesbian & Gay Anti-Violence Project (1992) The Off Our backs Report: A Study into Anti-Lesbian Violence, Gay & Lesbian Rights Lobby, Darlinghurst.
Miller, W (1995) Cop Out, The Herald Sun,December 15, pp 6-7.
Niland, C & Associates (1995) Niland Report: Executive Summary, Carmel Niland and Associates.
PLGLC (Police Lesbian and Gay Liaison Committee) (1997) Shades of Blue: Pink/Blue Companion Report on Community Violence/Harassment and Police Relations, Police Lesbian and Gay Liaison Committee, Melbourne Victoria.
Severs, W T (1996) Gay and Lesbian Contact Officer Scheme-Trial Period Evaluation, Community Relations Branch, AFP, Canberra.
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URL: http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AUFPPlatypus/1999/6.html