These new Paterson police officers can make a difference | Sayegh

In 2011, 125 police officers were laid off. It left our police department reeling and was a severe setback for public safety in Paterson.

Since taking office in 2018, my priority has been to hire more police officers to try to recover from the loss of so many officers over a decade ago. Moreover, we are also adamant about recruiting teenagers in our city to pursue a career as a police officer in Paterson. We visited the high schools and community college and we are starting to see the benefits of our recruiting efforts.

Last week, I had the honor of swearing in 29 cadets for our upcoming police academy. Within the new class there were so many heartwarming stories of homegrown talent taking the oath of office to potentially protect and serve their fellow Patersonians.

One of the cadets is Irene Chowdhury. She graduated from Kennedy High School’s prestigious STEM Academy and after completing the six months of training she will become the first Bangladeshi woman to serve as a police officer in Paterson.

Another cadet is Kimmani Barrett. He played college basketball at La Salle University, and is one of several African Americans in the class of recruits. At the ceremony, Mr. Barrett was asked why he wanted to be a police officer. He responded that he wanted “to protect and serve the city where he grew up.” He also went on to say that “I could be an inspiration to the youngsters, someday they look up to."

One of the most uplifting stories from the police academy class is about Christian Mullings. He is looking to follow in his mother’s footsteps to become a police officer in Paterson. His mother, Latrenta Grayson, is a highly respected member of our Community Policing Unit and has clearly been a positive influence in her son’s life. I can’t wait to see the mother and son team in action in Paterson.

If all of the cadets in this police academy successfully complete their six months of training, that would bring our number of police officers to 439, which would be the largest number since the layoffs in 2011.

Policing is not the most popular profession but it is a noble and necessary one. We will continue to recruit our young men and women in Paterson to want to become police officers. Our goal is to inspire other young Patersonians to become the next Irene Chowdhury, Kimmani Barrett or Christian Mullings.

Andre Sayegh is the mayor of Paterson.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Police officers for Paterson 2023