‘Tone deaf nonsense.’ KY State Police face backlash for post on gender, race.
Kentucky State Police have been slammed for posting a photo to Facebook Tuesday that says “our color is gray” and “our gender is trooper,” as many have criticized those statements for being offensive to minorities and transgender people.
The image was set as the agency’s cover photo and featured several state police officials. It had more than 4,000 shares and nearly 6,000 comments Wednesday morning, many of which were from people who were upset over the message.
State police changed their cover photo later Wednesday morning after the backlash and eventually deleted the photo from their page altogether. Thousands of people commented on the post prior to its deletion.
“You’re mocking human beings,” Rachel Marie said in a reply. “What’s wrong with you. You don’t stand by your oath to protect and serve ALL Kentuckians.”
Nikki Ceravolo Bagg said they were “mortified.”
“Have you learned nothing in the past couple of years?”
“What is this tone deaf nonsense?” Andi Shelton asked. “ ... It sure doesn’t make me feel like they’re out to protect (transgender and minority) populations in our state.”
Chris Hartman told the Herald-Leader he was “disgusted by this image, which is pretty clearly racist and transphobic.” Hartman is the executive director of the Fairness Campaign, which is a Kentucky LGBTQ advocacy organization. The Fairness Campaign’s goal is to fight discrimination against the LGBTQ community and racial minorities.
Kentucky State Police said Wednesday they’ve used the phrase featured in the image before, but they hadn’t heard concerns before.
“Over the past 25 years, the Kentucky State Police has used the phrase to demonstrate that the agency is committed to racial and gender inclusivity,” Sgt. William Gregory said. “Prior to today, we were unaware of any concerns raised about the phrase.
“Given that KSP is committed to providing professional services to everyone in the commonwealth and is actively pursuing a diverse workforce, we look forward to discussing and learning more about the concerns raised today.”
Hartman said state police should take note of the negative comments and remove the photo.
“What they’ve done is wrong and they need to apologize,” he said, but he also said the photo is evidence of “deep-rooted problems.”
“This is the same state agency that trained their troopers using ‘wisdom’ from Adolf Hitler,” Hartman said.
Recent insensitivity from state police, other law enforcement
Kentucky State Police were criticized last year after it was discovered the agency had once used a training presentation which featured quotes from Adolph Hitler and Robert E. Lee. The training advised trainees to become “the ruthless killer.”
The report led Gov. Andy Beshear to ask for the resignation of state police Commissioner Rodney Brewer. Phillip Burnett Jr. was named acting commissioner in Brewer’s place. Burnett Jr. was eventually named the permanent commissioner.
State law enforcement also faced criticism after an instructor lifted part of a training video from a white supremacist website. The video featured a Nazi symbol and came from a source that made derogatory references to Jewish people, according to a state investigation.
Beshear subsequently directed the state to investigate all Kentucky State Police and state Department of Criminal Justice training materials.
While many were critical of the Facebook post made Tuesday, others came to the defense of state police. Debra Lynn Parsons thanked state police in a comment on the post. David Durrett commented “a lot of us will always support you.”
State police didn’t immediately respond to questions about the post. The photo was still up on the agency’s page Wednesday morning.
