US: Police department apologises for transphobic tweet
A police department in the US has apologised after being accused of tweeting a transphobic message.
On Friday, referring to an officer stopping someone thought of being a prostitute, the Kansas City Police Department sent a message on the microblogging site, which read: “Wait, that prostitute was, in fact, not a man. Not doing anything against the law at present, so they let him/her go.”
After complaints were made, the tweet was deleted, and a message of apology was since tweeted.
“During Fri’s #kctweetalong, we posted a tweet that was offensive to LGBTQ & KC communities & we apologize for it. KCPD works tirelessly to educate ourselves on & serve all of our community. We’re committed to building culture of respect & inclusivity. We regret any hurt this may have caused. It conflicted w/ our values & we look forward to fostering relationships w/ dialog and respect,” they tweeted.
The police department puts all officers through sensitivity training, and employs an LGBT liaison officer. The tweet, according to reports, came from a “social media specialist”, rather than the police officer who stopped the suspect.
