Speaking Notes for Jacques Duchesneau,
Chief of Police MUCPS

Seminar: "Women in policing:
The year 2000 and beyond"

Canadian Police College

22 May 1997

Mr. Goulet,
Mr. LeBeuf,
Ms. McLean,
Members of the Advisory Committee,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am very pleased to be here today and to speak to you about a subject that is dear to my heart: women.

Women in policing, of course!

The seeds of change

Although it was a long time coming, priests now include women by saying "my dear brothers and sisters", instead of only "my dear brothers". Nevertheless, in our society, women continue to run into pitfalls on the road to their personal development.

Until quite recently, policing was, in fact and in law, an occupation for men. The arrival of women into police service in Canada in 1912 has not yet completely changed the idea that policing is a man's job and that toting a gun is a sign of virility. Given this, and the cult of masculine heroes, female police officers are necessarily, at least in popular tradition, seen as good back-ups in the line of fire. It is notoriously claimed that women excel principally in conflicts, disagreements and problems, and that they know nothing from nothing about the game of cops and robbers!

The situation of policewomen in Canada is similar to that in the United States and in the U.K. Police services started recruiting women at the beginning of the century. The first policewomen were hired in Vancouver in 1912. Toronto, Winnipeg, and Edmonton followed in 1913, 1917, and 1919, respectively. In 1921, the first female division was created, which included one inspector and three female officers who acted as prison guards. In 1943, this team received a significant promotion by also being given charge of minors and of female delinquents and victims.

In 1952 came a glimpse of recognition, when female officers began receiving the same training as male officers. Their duties, however, remained somewhat restricted, as you might have guessed, and even into the 1960s, women were not allowed to patrol. Instead, they were confined to desk jobs. At least they weren't forced to wash the uniforms! It was not until 1973 that the first female officers began patrolling in Canada, following pressure from the provincial government.

Let me assure you from the outset that policewomen rightly belong in the Service de police de la Communauté urbaine de Montréal. Today, the Service has 547 policewomen in different grades, including 438 police officers in our neighbourhood stations who patrol the 29 municipalities of the MUC.

The first female police officer to work for the MUC Police Service was Christiane Forcier. In 1979, Ms. Forcier, who is now a sergeant with the Municipal Court, managed to dip into the power reserve normally allotted to male officers. She left her mark on the Service in the name of all other policewomen to follow.

By hiring this police officer, the MUCPS did more than show that it was farther ahead of its time than other police forces. It also sowed the seeds of a major change in the attitudes and mentalities of police personnel and citizens. It also demonstrated that females, who represent 52% of the population (!), can be called upon to make a significant contribution to major social and criminal debates.

Without a doubt, the influx of women to policing in Canada has caused a veritable revolution. If you take a closer look at their integration, you must admit that it was not an easy process! In order to make their mark, women had to - and still must - break down stereotypes, endure pressure from colleagues and superiors who were against their endeavours, at times accept that their opinions were given less weight than those of others, and tolerate sexual comments.

The integration of women

If recent studies conducted all over Canada are to be believed, then policewomen get a sense of satisfaction from protecting citizens, fighting crime, and from feeling useful. On the other side of the coin, they also need to constantly speak up so as not to be ignored, to have the guts to prove themselves, and to face resistance on several fronts.

There are three typical attitudes concerning the integration of women into policing.

First there are those male colleagues who claim there is no room for policewomen in the police. They are not misogynists, they say, but they are against it. For them, the work of a police officer is one of action, authority and force, which are incompatible with femininity. Women upset the cohesion of a group, they say, and create uneasiness. And when there is a dangerous situation, they have to think about defending themselves and defending the women, too. Big deal!

In the second group, where the majority fall, nuance reigns. Officers in this group recognize that policewomen have their place in the organization, but just in certain jobs and only for certain tasks. If I tell you the number of policewomen who hold positions of authority in the different Canadian police services, you will raise your eyebrows - there are probably less than 1%.

Finally, the last group demands total equality between men and women. If policewomen have chosen the occupation, it is because they feel capable of doing it. Thus there are not two jobs: one male, one female, there is just one, that of police officer.

This demonstrates that police personnel are becoming more open-minded to the question. However , the reality for policewomen remains far from perfect. Female officers must still endure the attitude of certain male colleagues who lend weight to the joke that "the problem with women in policing is that there are men in policing!"

I know it will not exactly be news when I say that police force manuals devote a lot of space to the discrimination suffered by some policewomen. I also know I shall not be telling tales out of school when I say that the phenomenon exists and that it resists statistics because of the law of silence that prevails on the subject.

Just last week, I heard a sad story: a policewoman in her early thirties considered committing suicide in her patrol car. You might speculate that any number of circumstances may have converged to lead this young policewoman to an emotional dead-end. We cannot say for certain. What I do know is that she had undergone a series of little initiations a few years ago, which must have affected her confidence and sense of belonging within the group.

That sort of thing is not common practice in Canada,
I assure you. But low blows are dealt and, in that regard,
I can only say that the officers in charge, as authority figures, must show no clemency, ever, to those who practise "intimidation, discrimination and rejection."

Those in charge of police forces must ensure that desk jobs and behind-the-scene duties are never assigned to officers based on their gender, ethnic origin, marital status, sexual orientation, age, religion or social status. They must ensure that good a candidate is not overlooked in the police profession simply because her name is Marie and not Joseph.

I am convinced that if we do not completely overcome the obstacle of discrimination, many young women will hesitate to consider a career in policing and will thus deprive the population of their contribution.

If I were asked what a police force should do, in concrete terms, to facilitate the integration of women into its organization, I would describe two policies that would adhere to the principle of equality as well as show respect for human dignity.

Sexual harassment policy

As a minimum, every police force should enforce a sexual harassment policy in order to penalize all behaviour, remarks and actions that are humiliating or offensive, including those that:

• undermine dignity;
• demoralize the work environment;
• contradict this respectful approach, which is to be fostered in our relations with all citizens.

At present, the police services in Calgary, Toronto, Hamilton, London , Montreal and that of la Sûreté du Québec all have such a policy in place.

Equal opportunity program

Similarly, every police force in Canada should institute an official equal opportunity program aimed at putting in place:

• an organization that is representative of the community
• an environment that fosters maintaining a desirable social climate.

In the case of the Service, there are 547 policewomen this year, against 355 in 1991, 300 in 1989 and 171 in 1986. If this trend continues, the SPCUM should reach the objective of 32% by the year 2001, assuming we are able to hire.

More women in policing?

When asked if I believe that we should encourage more women to join policing, I reply in the affirmative, of course. Women bring a new dimension to policing, offer a different reading of reality and enrich an organization with their aptitude for oral communication, persuasion, negotiation and intuition.

Dozens of studies and surveys have been conducted all over the world regarding the validity of having a greater female presence in policing. What do the studies say?

In the eyes of citizens, policewomen would open the way to the changes desired. They would be less aggressive, more likely to use tact in difficult moments, be able to easily calm people down and to diffuse situations well. In sum, they would be less Rambo and would change reports of violence and the use of force.

If we believe the surveys, the work of these women in the police would bring benefits such as reducing public complaints regarding police brutality and increasing the service and human relations aspects of the police.

Because of their sensitivity, policewomen would be better able to handle certain mandates called "feminine" and to take care of the fall-out from crime: helping rape victims or women in distress, cases of conjugal violence, child abuse, and - dare I add -typing and preparing reports! In fact, citizens appreciate the fact that policewomen are faced with the same family realities as all parents in our society.

A study conducted in Vancouver from 1975 to 1982 revealed that, of 7 call dispatchers, none had taken into account the sex of the police officer when responding to calls for service or to send reinforcements.

• However, two of them indicated that they would prefer to send a man and a woman to take care of domestic quarrels, and to send a woman when the victim was a woman.
• Three dispatchers mentioned that they would prefer to send a man in the case of fights.

Another study conducted in British Columbia shows that, in terms of the qualities needed to be a good police officer, women scored higher than men on integrity, ability to learn, knowledge of the work, ability to communicate, interpersonal relations and - submission to authority. Men, on the other hand, were considered better than women when it came to physical strength, confronting problems, resisting stress, personal impact, independence, decisiveness, and initiative.

Policewomen would contribute to creating constructive interaction between police and citizens. They would be more "Zen" and therefore more willing to listen to others.

Within the Montreal Urban Community Police Service, there is no doubt that policewomen are considered equal to policemen; they are equally intelligent and competent, and equally determined. Unfortunately, in our police force like in many others, fewer women than men occupy executive positions.

For example, within the MUCPS we currently find only:

• 1 female Commander in charge of one of the 23 neighbourhood stations
• 1 female Deputy Inspector-Commander of a police station
• 4 female Lieutenants, compared to 112 male Lieutenants
• 53 female Sergeants who work among 396 male Sergeants
• 19 female Sergeant-Detectives compared to 507 male Sergeant-Detectives.

The women who occupy positions of authority, as well others who are making their mark as patrol officers, have, on average, about 6 years' seniority versus 16 for men. Their average age is about 30, compared to 39 for men.

For a long time, we have associated words like authority, courage, moral fibre, and strength to men. However, with our new social structures, policewomen tend to emancipate the norms. At the SPCUM, we have been talking about the complementarity of men and women for quite a few years now.

What does that mean? It means that policemen and women really do work as a team, that they determine common ground and, most of all, that they accept, and find it useful to have approaches that are often different.

It is this complementarity that leads to better results in solving problems. We are not talking about masculine or feminine roles here, we are talking about the respect each has for the other, and about solidarity.

The former head of a homicide squad in New York, who is now 71, told me that women have something men will never have - intuition. Women are unbeatable when it comes to finding the ketchup in the refrigerator - because they look behind the mustard!

Will women be better represented in the year 2000?

The last point I would like to briefly elucidate: female presence in policing in the year 2000.

Clearly, policewomen will play a pivotal role in policing in the next millennium. The Canadian population is aging and becoming more impoverished, and juvenile violence is increasing, while our social fabric is becoming enriched by new ethnic groups. Thanks to their chameleon-like adaptability, policewomen can react quickly to this new landscape, and develop a police force that is more human and based more on relationships.

By using their sensitivity as a tool to approach their duties, they will be able to connect with citizens, find new courses of action that feel right to them, and discover new ways to operate.

The participation of women in the police profession is still stirring opposition; women still have to prove their effectiveness. I am, however, absolutely convinced that the population will soon recognize that policewomen are playing an active part in "building" our public security and that they are an asset that has been missing for far too long.

Thank you.