BALTIMORE — Getting more women in uniform is a goal behind a new nationwide initiative.
The Baltimore Police Department joined the initiative.
It's called the 30 by 30 initiative.
BPD pledged that 30 percent of their officers will be women by 2030.
Out of all the nine police districts in Baltimore, the Eastern District has the highest number of women in uniform - 2 sergeants and 19 officers.
“We all get along together here, and try to make other women come to the department and serve," said Linda Rodriguez, a BPD detective.
The goal behind the initiative is to have women as 30 percent of the sworn recruits by 2030.
The idea started in 2018, when the former Newark Police Chief reached out to the National Institute of Justice.
Nearly 40 departments across the country have joined the pledge.
“It would be great for the department, more representative for females to be out here, so they can be seen, not just as a male dominant profession," said Andrea Hamm, a BPD officer.
For certain calls, women are preferred.
“We have a lot of domestic assaults that females are not comfortable talking to males because they’ve been in such an abusive relationship or the current situation is abusive," said Heather Myers," a BPD.
Research from the University of San Diego shows women are less likely to use excessive force.
“I feel like women a lot of times have a little bit more patience because of having kids or having that motherly instinct," said Myers.
Overcoming the perception of women on the force is one of the biggest challenges.
“Being a woman officer, it’s hard because sometimes there’s a lot of people in the street that see the figure of a woman, hey she’s a woman we can get over it," said Rodriguez.
And that’s one of the reasons why BPD has a Femtors program. It’s a female mentorship and empowerment program for officers.
“I think one of the things is being able to navigate this space knowing that is a male-dominated field. And having to rise to the rank to be a decision maker," said Kim Stevenson, BPD equity program manager.
Stevenson helps run the program. She hopes the women participating develop long-lasting relationships.
"To help them navigate the spaces, especially when they come on board in the agency to understand the lay of the land," said Stevenson.
As of right now, there are 320 women who are sworn in officers, which is 16 percent of the people in uniform.
The department is optimistic they will reach their goal by 2030.
On March 21, the department will be hosting a panel in honor of Women’s History Month.
The panel will feature women leaders from the department.
