Policing an increasingly diverse America.

A conference devoted to the issue of cultural diversity is not only timely but also vital to the well-being and effectiveness of the law enforcement profession. Cultural diversity has been the backbone of growth throughout the history of our great country.

The diversity that exists today in Los Angeles County started in a little Indian village, 1 of about 25 Indian villages scattered throughout the Los Angeles Basin. In those days, little over 200 years ago, what is now known as Los Angeles County had fewer than 2,000 inhabitants.

Then, in 1781, 11 families left Sonora, Mexico, to establish an agricultural settlement for Spanish authorities near the Indian village. These immigrants founded the town of Our Lady, The Queen of the Angels, known today as Los Angeles. The ethnic diversity of those first settlers included 21 individuals of mixed blood, 15 blacks, and 8 native Mexicans.

From 1781 to the present, wave after wave of people of varying ethnicities, cultures, and races streamed into Los Angeles County to make it a multicultural, multinational community. Today, people from over 140 countries comprise the mix of 9.3 million residents in Los Angeles County. Some of the immigrant populations are very substantial.

Los Angeles is the second-largest Mexican, Armenian, Korean, Filipino, Salvadoran, and Guatemalan city in the world. It is the third-largest Canadian city and has the largest Japanese, Iranian, Cambodian, and gypsy communities in the United States. More Samoans reside in Los Angeles County than in American Samoa.

Richness of Diversity

The merging of cultures and ethnic backgrounds produced both a richness of diversity and a myriad of problems. The richness of diversity is evident in the new communities that have evolved from people relocating here in hopes of establishing a better life for themselves and their families. Can you remember the first time that you did a double take at a market sign written in both English and a foreign language? Such signs are now so prevalent in communities throughout Los Angeles County that they are no longer unusual.

There are also new and unique stores, businesses, places of worship, newspapers, and television and radio stations throughout Southern California catering to this rich diversity. In fact, it was reported recently that the most popular radio station in Los Angeles is a Hispanic language station.

The Complexity of Culture

The myriad of problems are as diverse as the mix of individuals who now comprise Los Angeles. Each ethnic community strives and struggles to overcome life's challenges to acquire part of the American Dream--the dream to be free to live, work, worship, and play as it sees fit. However, the cultural mix itself can cause problems.

The complexity of culture might be explained by comparing it to an iceberg. The tip of the iceberg represents the external part of a culture, e.g., the language, customs, dress, etc. The portion of the iceberg that lies beneath the ocean's surface, which makes up the larger part of the iceberg, corresponds to the internal aspects of a culture. This includes the beliefs, thought patterns, and perspectives shared by others in the same cultural group--in other words, their basic feelings toward life in general.

Internal culture often determines people's behavior. To understand what motivates people's behavior is to understand their internal culture.

When internal cultures conflict, it can be as destructive as a collision between an iceberg and an ocean liner. Misunderstanding between two cultural groups can lead to conflict and, taken to the extreme, physical confrontations.

We have recently seen this physical conflict in our schools, our jails, and throughout our communities. Taken to the extreme, these acts of conflict can become hate crimes. Hate crimes, whether directed at a place of worship or a specific group of individuals because of their lifestyle, is a sad example of a value system in decay--values in direct conflict with the American value that all men are created equal.

Cultural Empathy

Law enforcement professionals need to develop cultural understanding or, better yet, cultural empathy. We need to put ourselves in other people's cultural shoes to understand what motivates their behavior. This concept can, perhaps, be illustrated by the following story:

There once was a naval officer whose ultimate ambition was to command a battleship. He finally achieved that goal and was given commission of the newest and proudest ship in the fleet. One stormy night, the captain was on the ship's bridge, when off to the port side, he spotted a strange light rapidly closing on his ship. Immediately, he ordered the signalman to flash the message to the unidentified craft, "Alter your course 10 degrees to the south." Within moments, the reply came back, "Alter your course 10 degrees to the north."

The captain was determined that his ship would take a back seat to no other, and he ordered the signalman to declare, "Alter course 10 degrees. I am the captain!" Back came the response, "Alter your course. I am Seaman Third Class Smith." Now the captain was infuriated. He grabbed the signal light and fired off," Alter course. I am a battleship!" The reply came back, "Alter your course. I am a lighthouse!"

Law enforcement professionals need to alter their course with a broader understanding of others. More than ever, law enforcement professionals need an open mind for change. Not being willing to alter a hazardous course may put you and your ship in peril.

Cultural Guidelines

Many of you attending this conference are looking for direction in developing a cultural awareness program for your department. I am sure that you will be exposed to a variety of innovative programs that you may consider adopting. But I believe, that to succeed in such an important endeavor you must first consider the foundation on which your department is built.

In the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, the foundation on which all programs, projects, and our very future are built is our core values. You might call them our cultural guidelines. They are:

* Be service-oriented to our diverse communities by performing duties with the highest possible degree of personal and professional integrity

* Be fair and impartial and treat all people with dignity

* Work in partnership with the community and its citizens in solving problems and maintaining peace

* Be fully accountable for your actions or failures and, when appropriate, for the actions and failures of subordinates

* Be guided by reverence for human life when considering the use of deadly force 

* Treat every member of the department, both sworn and civilian, as you would expect to be treated if the position were reversed.

I sincerely believe that law enforcement leaders must establish their own department's core values that will serve as a foundation and springboard for the future. Once that foundation is firmly in place, it must be incorporated into all aspects of the organization.

Cultural Awareness Community Advisory Committee

When the sheriff's department developed its cultural awareness training program, we continually drew on our core values. We first established a cultural awareness community advisory committee to reflect the rich diversity that is part of the department and the communities we serve. The advisory committee has direct access to me and makes recommendations on issues concerning the community and the department.

The advisory committee assisted the department greatly in developing cultural awareness training programs. The committee also recommended programs to increase understanding between law enforcement and specific ethnic groups within the community.

As an example, the sheriff's department established the "Host a Deputy Program." A family within the community voluntarily hosts a deputy in its home for an evening. The purpose is to have a deputy and a community member communicate directly in an informal, friendly environment. Open lines of communication broaden understanding for both the citizen and the deputy.

Cultural Awareness Training

The department also established what I believe to be an effective, all-encompassing cultural awareness training program to be able to deal more effectively with the diverse communities we serve. A training program dealing with such a sensitive topic as cultural diversity should not be viewed as a politically expedient act. It should be viewed as skill development, and more importantly, as employee development, which leads to organizational competency.

The training begins with a 36-hour cultural diversity course in the academy. This training is followed by cultural awareness specific to the custody environment and the patrol unit level, as well as training for supervisors, managers, and the executive staff. Cultural awareness is also incorporated into other training programs to underscore its importance and the organization's commitment.

A key aspect of the cultural awareness program is conducted at the field training officer level. The field training officer develops organizational values in new personnel, which is why these officers must have the understanding, knowledge, and commitment to train personnel in diversity issues.

The commitment of department executives in supporting the training endeavor is of utmost importance. The department head must be seen as totally supportive and as an integral part of the training program. A department head who personally introduces the training day or does a video lead-in to the training day communicates to the organization the importance of the training and the commitment of the department head to it.

Conclusion

Victor Frankel, a survivor of 2 years in a Nazi concentration camp, saw his wife, children, parents, and many other family members tortured and murdered during the Holocaust. Frankel somehow survived. After being liberated from this horror, he wrote a comment about humanity: "There are only two races of people in the world--the decent and the indecent."

As law enforcement professionals, we must strive to eliminate any racial, ethnic, or cultural bias that may exist among our ranks and that may influence the manner in which we carry out our duties. We must recognize that there are indecent, as well as decent, people among all groups throughout our society.