He leaned backwards on the sofa. Relaxed and calm, with his right leg placed over his left, he took questions from Edmonton’s media community on a wide range of topics. After just 90 days on the job, the new Edmonton Police Service (EPS) Chief, Dale McFee had coffee with the media community in Edmonton on May 6, 2019, at Edmonton Police Headquarter in Downtown Edmonton.
Fresh from a big public apology to the LGBTQ2+ community in Edmonton, Chief McFee emphasized on the need to build relationships with vulnerable and minority communities. The former hockey player turned law enforcement officer said at the coffee chat that he will make himself available to minority communities and vulnerable groups to address concerns. He added that he has already met with members of the Somali and indigenous communities. The new Chief has started on a re-structuring path by moving the Equity, Diversity, and Human Rights Unit of the EPS to report directly to him.
A frank speaking Police Chief appreciated Edmonton’s diversity, “…Diversity is our strength, unfortunately, sometimes we do not see that…” He added that the police are responsible for 100% of intake into the criminal justice system. Chief McFee is working towards bringing the right people to the table and wants to reach out to multicultural communities by making himself available, earn trust, and build relationships. As a former hockey player and hockey team executive, he is used to result oriented team work. He shared that he has already started his outreach into different communities to build relationships. The new Edmonton’s Chief shared that with just 2,000 homeless out of a million people in Edmonton, something better could be done for the city’s homeless.
While making some positive waves and matching the change of the face of EPS to the the noises coming out of the EPS in just 90 days, multicultural communities will hope that these noises from an Edmontonian who has gone out and bring back some talents and skills, will translate into concrete policies and impact on the ground especially for those communities who face disproportionate stop and search, and under represented in EPS uniform.
