Women In Law Enforcement

Networking and associations have really helped women. There are a couple of big organizations whose goals include helping women who are considering or are already in law enforcement by providing information and supporting them. There are four major associations that help do these things: the International Association of Women Police (IAWP), The National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives, The National Center for Women and Policing, and Women in Federal Law Enforcement (Horne). They all have several hundred to even thousands of members. Each association has different goals and helps with different things but they all share one goal, promoting women in law enforcement so that one day they will experience equality.

Female police officers have been saddled with a stigma ever since they were finally allowed to join their fellow male officers on the force in the 1970’s. It is said that when a female officer is being harsh, she is often called anything other than firm. However, when a male officer is harsh, he is considered firm and just being a man. Female police officers are dubbed incapable of being able to perform their duties equivalent or superior to a male officer simply because she is

TV shows have made some changes since then but policewomen are still being shown as unrealistic, for example the show “Hawaii Five-0” has a female police officer and she is over sexualized. “Hawaii Five-0” last week put on a skimpy bikini to go undercover to make contact with three female surfers who had just killed a business executive during an armed robbery they staged on a Waikiki tourist trolley bus” and “Kono in her tight jeans and high-heeled boots is not only a thin, beautiful, champion surfer but also a skilled sniper who can fire a steady shot from a moving car to knock off a thug rushing to escape on the upper floors of a high-rise”(Fawcett, 2015).

Employment opportunities for the female police officer are large. Women will be recruited for many jobs in the field to expand the pool of potential sworn officer. It should be a goal off policing to recruit females so they can be recognized on the streets, making it more of a position that women not in the field of police work an option as a career choice. Allen (1973) States, about women police officers, “any question of the value of their contribution to the solution of police problems has long ago been relegated to the limbo of things proved and taken completely for granted.” (p.213) The status of women police officers has grown since the beginning of women in the law enforcement field. As many might think that it is an overwhelmingly large amount, it is still generally a small amount. “Women were 37% of the labor force in 1979, 45% by 1992 Women hold less than 5% of all senior management jobs across the US. Women's representation in

Among police, there are stark differences between male and female officers. Cara E. Rabe-Hemp researched these sex differences by conducting a series of interviews with policewomen. These interviews reveal how policewomen cope with the seemingly impossible task to find a balance between feminine values that they were raised to uphold and masculine values that their male-dominated field demands. According to the individual perspective, employees’ performance is more shaped by their unique personal experiences as opposed to standardized formal training (Britt 185). Since neither police officers’ formal training nor their subculture reduce or eliminate the differences between policemen and policewomen, sex differences have a much more significant

Even with the studies, and the fact that years have passed, within the 80’s and 90’s there have been lawsuits and files of harassment in San Francisco, New York, Detroit, and Michigan to name a few. If that is not enough women often stuffer defeminization, from male officers that somehow try to neutralize the fact that women are women.

Qualitative research methods are used to examine the perceptions of women police regarding their career opportunities and trajectories, and their experiences with regard to the culture, practices, and policies of policing. Purposive sampling was used to identify and recruit a representative number of policewomen as study participants. Subjects completed surveys and participated in in-depth interviews. Data was analyzed through the use of constant comparative procedures, with member checks and interrater reliability scores obtained to ensure trustworthiness of the data.

The Elizabeth Fry society in an organization created to work with women in each stage of the criminal justice process. The three stages referred to within this organization are women who are at risk, are involved in the criminal justice system, and recovery and transition from institutions, to effectively reintegrate back into society (Elizabeth Fry Society of Greater Vancouver, 2012). The organization was established by Elizabeth Fry, 1839, who was deemed a significant advocate for humane treatment of women, specializing in women and children regarding treatment within the criminal justice system (Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Society, 2013). Furthermore, this individual’s insight, and persistence in asserting a role as an

A while ago when someone thinks of careers in criminal justice, they most likely imagine men in any positions that come to mind. Maybe because most feel the field of criminal justice is unsafe, stressful, and unpredictable. Before 1972, the number of women employed in the criminal justice system as police officers, correctional officers, lawyers, and judges was a small number. This is understandable: statistics from a study conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs – Bureau of Justice Statistics show that men outnumber women in all areas of federal law enforcement, in most places making up at least 75 percent of the workforce. Now according to the United States Department of Labor, women make up 46.8% of the US workforce.

Like employment discrimination, sexual discrimination is something both male and female officers’ face in the workforce, internally and externally. However, it is the female officer that is the more common victim to this rather than their male counterpart. An example of internal sexual discrimination would be a male officer telling there counterpart that “women have no right being in part of an organization that strongly relies on men to get the job done.” This may also be known as a form of sexual harassment toward a co-worker which is unacceptable in any job. An example of external sexual discrimination would be when a female officer arrives to the scene of a crime and the victim refuses to cooperate with them because of the fact that they were expecting assistance from someone of more masculinity, like a male officer. Ethically, if any of these scenarios were to happen to either gender of law enforcement, the best thing to do once more is set aside all emotions for the time being.

Women have stereotypes in every aspect of life. Stereotypes sometimes have a dominating affect on the hiring process and retaining the position. Although credentials and producing good work during your hours is what should count, it does not always take prevalence. It is proven that men are physically stronger than women. That does mean that women do not know how to fight or protect themselves. Women are trained the same as men in order to become a correctional officer. According to MacDonald (2012), the fact that women go through a menstrual cycle and have PMS can play a role towards their ‘weaknesses’ of being a woman. Many employers see this as a weakness and that it leaves a window of weakness during that time of the month due to the typical symptoms of a menstrual cycle and PMS. Symptoms such as fatigue, headaches or migraines, menstrual cramps, aggressive behavior and mood swings are the mentioned ones. What is not

The criminal justice system is a male dominated occupation. For many years women have tried to break down the barrier and some have succeeded. But unlike men, women have to fight to be respected and to be heard. There has always been a gender bias. Women have decided to work outside the home and “move in” on careers that were specified as male professions. Females unfortunately have to

Obstacle which spawn from the beliefs that women are not capable of performing the job duties. Bias may be held by some employer which creates issues in the hiring, selecting, and recruiting of female candidates. In the past women were subjected to separate entrance requirements and lower pay. Females working in law enforcement were once given duties limited to positions such as juvenile delinquency, child abuse, domestic violence counseling, and custodial functions. Career advancement for women working in law enforcement is difficult to acquire compared to their male counterparts.

There is also discrimination in the police force. According to Women and the Criminal Justice System, women are discriminated against when seeking a job in the police force (Wormer and Bartollas, 2007). Society and men who are already on the police force believes that women are too weak to carry out law and unable to capture criminals. This is an example of men being the dominant group over women. In society, women are known to be soft-hearted, loving, emotional and supportive. These characteristics make women look weak as a police officer. However, studies have shown that women are just as effective police

Gender inequality still plays a huge role in today’s society. Women comprise only a small percentage of the local law enforcement agencies across the nation. Women have been a part of law enforcement since the 20th century but have only been noticed within the last 40 years. Back in the 1970’s women rarely held positions in law enforcement and if they did it was mainly clerical/desk positions. Even though the amount of women in law enforcement today has increased, women still only make up roughly around 13 percent of the law enforcement work force (Public). Women can make such an impact in the Law Enforcement field if given a fair chance but they may face many problems when doing so. Some say that women don’t belong, while others suggest