Surrey RCMP officer disheartened by Vancouver Pride decision to exclude police

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — A member of the Surrey RCMP is disappointed with the decision by the Vancouver Pride Society to ban police from this year’s festivities.

Surrey RCMP Cpl. Elenore Sturko, an LGBTQ2+ officer who often speaks on behalf of the detachment, said Thursday she’s dishearted by the move.

She wants to see an end to discrimination and use of excessive force, but Sturko said law enforcement officers take part in Pride to stand with their communities while also standing up to problems within their own institutions.

“Even though I’m LGBT, I’m wearing the uniform of the enemy, and that’s very passionate for someone to hold that opinion,” she said. “I think one of the things as a lesbian police officer, I hope that people in the community can see me and see a place for themselves in our organizations.”

I am beyond grateful for the relationship between @SurreyRCMP and Surrey Pride. we have to keep working together to make a better future.

— Elenore (@elenoresturko) June 11, 2020

She says having members of institutions like the RCMP participate in Pride can help break down barriers instead of creating them.

“Having the ability to participate and to show our strengths and support for our own members within our own institutions is an incredibly important part of that,” she said.

“It allows me to show other people, to role model other attitudes and actions I want to see echoed in my own institution,” she said of participating in community events as a police officer.

The Vancouver Pride Society instituted the ban Wednesday in a show of support to Black communities demanding accountability from police.

A statement issued by the Vancouver Pride Society says the roots of Pride stem from “righteous anger, riot, and uprising against police brutality.”

It says despite attempts at reform, brutality continues against people of colour, as well as transgender people, sex workers, the disabled, and homeless.

The society says police and corrections officers are not welcome at any Pride celebrations, stepping up restrictions imposed in 2017 that banned uniformed officers from the parade.

It also supports the movement to defund police, saying police reform has not worked and it’s time to invest in “alternative ways” to manage public safety.

Sturko said it is an important time for dialogue and to listen to criticism.

“I think there can be a natural inclination to be defensive, but that’s not what we need right now,” she said. “We need to actually come together and to listen to each other’s concerns and find a way forward to a better future together.”

Out on Patrol, a newly formed organization representing marginalized LGBTQ2S+ officers in B.C., said it is saddened by the society’s decision.

“However, as people who not only identify as LGBTQ2S+, but also as people who work passionately to protect our communities as first responders, we recognize the need for police to step back during this extremely difficult time to offer the queer community and communities of colour time to grieve and heal,” the organization said in a release.

“Despite our absence this year from Vancouver Pride, our members will remain faithfully in service of the LGBTQ2S+ community. In time and with healing, our hope is that we will come together as individuals committed to a loving and inclusive Pride to find a way for law enforcement to once more take part in the festivities.”

-With files from the Canadian Press