Homophobic police officer who shouted ‘f****t’ at Black Lives Matter protesters stripped of powers
Protesters lay flowers at the feet of Chicago Police Department officers on June 06, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois.(Natasha Moustache/Getty)
A Chicago police officer has been stripped of his police powers after he was found to have shouted a homophobic slur at Black Lives Matter protesters.
A clip emerged on social media this month of the unnamed officer in an argument with anti-racism protesters after a traffic cone and part of a barricade were thrown at him.
The officer, who did not appear to be injured, yelled at the protesters: “B***h! Wait ’till I turn my back, you f**king faggot!”
Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot — one of the first out queer Black women in office anywhere in the United States — told a press conference on June 5: “We will not tolerate people who cross this line. We will not tolerate excessive force.
“We will not tolerate profanity and homophobic comments that demean the badge, demean the honour of being a Chicago police officer, and demean the value of who we are as Chicagoans. We will not tolerate that.
“If you are one of those officers who choose to do those things, or to tape over their badges, or to turn off their body-worn cameras — all things that violate very clear directives of the Chicago Police Department — we will find you, we will identify you, and we will strip you of your police powers. Period.”
Homophobic Chicago police officer found and fired.
After an investigation was conducted, the officer has now been identified, and the Civilian Office of Police Accountability recommended that his powers be stripped.
Kyle Cunningham, the man who took the video of the incident, told CBS Chicago: “Having a homophobic cop sets us back so many years.
“It’s really unnerving to know that the people in uniform who are supposed to protect us are actively going against us.”
Lawsuits filed against the Chicago Police department for misconduct against LGBT+ people have reportedly cost the city almost $300,000 in settlements in the last decade.
