Recently I was at a cross-training for law enforcement officers and mental health professionals where one of the session leaders said–as an aside–”did you know your uniforms were designed to intimidate?”
His source was a superior at his own organization, who used that to justify not allowing uniformed police officers to be seen “hanging around” their mental health facility in order to give clients rides home.
With policing in the spotlight these past few years, uniforms are indeed one of the things that have generated discussion. You may remember this being in the spotlight in Ferguson, Missouri in 2014, during the unrest following the shooting of Michael Brown. Local police were criticized for wearing riot gear, while the Missouri State Highway Patrol was praised for sporting a more traditional look. Last year, President Obama brought attention to this issue again when he advocated “softer looking” uniforms for police officers. Shortly thereafter, Travis Yates wrote a response on Law Officer, called “Why the Soft Uniform is Dangerous.” Continue reading “On the “tactical” look”