Dear Mayor Irvin;
We appreciate your efforts on behalf of the Aurora Pride Parade, as well as those of the men and women of the Aurora Police Department, who’ve been excellent partners in keeping the events safe and well-organized.
It is for precisely this reason that we are not excluding them, nor anyone else. We encourage participation by any and all LGBTQ and allied law enforcement officers, from the Aurora Police Department or any other local agency.
However, it is our responsibility as organizers to provide the most welcoming environment possible for the largest number of participants we can.
As of this writing, trust between police and LGBTQ people and people of color is remarkably low. I’m sure you find this as distressing as I do, as this makes both residents and officers less safe. Many people belonging to these groups feel a great deal of anxiety simply in the presence of a police car, weapons or uniform. It’s been said that it’s unfair to paint all officers with the same brush, so to speak, and I couldn’t agree more. Unfortunately, the reality on the ground is that there is a perception that though negative incidents with police are the result of a small number of bad officers, it’s not always clear that there is enough being done to address those officers’ actions. Many people of color and LGBTQ people have lived experience that includes frequent negative experiences with police. As a result, the average resident cannot be sure of the intentions, or sadly, the character, of any individual officer, unless they have personally had positive interactions with that officer, as I personally have had with many Aurora Police Department officers.
It is beyond the scope of Aurora Pride’s mission to resolve this situation. It is only within our power, as well as our responsibilities as the hosting organization, to try to reduce the tension and animosity among the participants and attendees of our event. It is with this in mind that we have invited law enforcement officers to participate, but also asked them to refrain from bringing such items as may re- traumatize for other attendees, as we do any other group. I stress that this is not a punitive action toward law enforcement; far from it, and it saddens me that it seems to be perceived that way. A punitive action would have been a ban, which is not what we are discussing.
This is simply an effort to foster goodwill between multiple groups of important Aurorans. Participation by law enforcement officers in civilian clothes, clearly identified as law enforcement officers by signs, banners, t-shirts, and the like, would almost certainly be perceived as an olive branch.
We would like to offer, additionally, that if officers have a “soft uniform”, something like a polo shirt with patch or logo, we would absolutely accept that.
Currently, no municipal law enforcement groups have applied to participate, and I feel that this is a missed opportunity. I truly hope they will reconsider.
