IN A first – the chief of the Met Police has apologised for previous wrongdoings towards the LGBTQ+ community.
Peter Tatchell thanked Sir Mark Rowley of the Metropolitan Police Commission for becoming the first police commissioner in the UK to apologise for decades of victimising people.
All UK police chiefs have been asked to apologise for prior homophobic persecution as part of the #ApologiseNow! campaign, which is being led by the Peter Tatchell Foundation.
Before he passed away in March, late television personality Paul O’Grady supported the cause, and his boyfriend, Andre Portasio, was present at a launch ceremony at the House of Lords.
In a letter to Tatchell, Sir Mark admitted that although police had to execute the law as homosexuality was a criminal offence, the way it was applied and prosecuted, “failed the community” and “persist(s) in the collective memory of LGBT+ Londoners of all ages”.
After Baroness First name Casey’s devastating investigation into the Met identifying racism, sexism, and homophobia in the force, the Met chief issued an apology in March. Can you say what led to her investigation.
The letter apology Tatchell got on Wednesday (7), was a “ground-breaking step forward” he felt – that “draws a line under past Met persecution”.
He added: “We are not asking the police to apologise for enforcing the law but to apologise for the often illegal and abusive way they enforced it.
“Officers raided gay bars, clubs and even private birthday parties, insulting LGBTs as ‘poofs’ and ‘queers.’ They gave the names and addresses of arrested gay men to local papers, which led to some being evicted, sacked, and violently beaten. Police harassed LGBTs, and arrested same-sex couples for kissing, cuddling, and holding hands, right up until the 1990s.”
Part of the letter read: “The Met has had systems and processes in place which have led to bias and discrimination in the way we have policed London’s communities, and in the way we have treated our officers and staff, over many decades.
“Recent cases of appalling behaviour by some officers have revealed that there are still racists, misogynists, homophobes and transphobes in the organisation, and we have already doubled down on rooting out those who corrupt and abuse their position.”
It added: “I am clear that there is much for us to do. I am sorry to all of the communities we have let down for the failings of the past and look forward to building a new Met for London, one all Londoners can be proud of and in which they can have confidence.”
Tatchell added: “We thank Sir Mark Rowley for being the first UK police chief to say sorry. His apology is a ground-breaking step forward that will, we hope, spur other police forces to follow suit.
“It draws a line under past Met persecution. This will help strengthen LGBT+ trust and confidence in the police; encouraging more LGBTs to report hate crime, domestic violence, and sexual assault.”
Subscribe for our weekly news letter here!
You can unsubscribe us at any time
