Black, gay former police officer Kevin Maxwell has said that homophobia and racism are “too ingrained” in the police force for any change to take place.
Maxwell, who has recently written a book called Forced Out about the homophobic and racist abuse he endured while working as a police officer, told The Guardian he does not hold out hope for change.
“I think it is too ingrained and I doubt it will change in my lifetime,” Maxwell said.
“It’s a cancer in the police and nobody knows how to cut it out. The leadership have a lot to answer for.”
Black, gay former police officer Kevin Maxwell said homophobia and racist discrimination is rife in the force.
He continued: “They talk the talk but there is no real punishment for misbehaviour.”
Maxwell said that two officers who he accused of discrimination were later promoted.
“That was their reward. What message does that send out?” he asked.
It’s a cancer in the police and nobody knows how to cut it out. The leadership have a lot to answer for.
The former police officer, who is from Liverpool, said he regrets that he allowed the abuse to continue for as long as it did.
“I also feel a lot of shame that I joined the force in the first place and didn’t listen to the friends who warned me not to,” he said.
“Now when I think about those wasted years, which I will never get back – I can’t describe how that feels. I lost everything – my marriage, my home, my income, my mental health. All of it.”
Young people should enter the police force with their ‘eyes wide open’.
He said he never wanted to quit on his dream of being a police officer – an aspiration he held since he was a child.
Maxwell recommends that young people from minority background should enter the police force with their “eyes wide open”.
“They need to be very mindful about the attitudes and prejudices they are likely to face.”
He added: “If I were to start saying to young Black and brown boys, gay young men or lesbians, ‘Don’t join the police’, then nothing is ever going to change.
“I believe the force desperately needs more Black and brown recruits, more gay recruits.”