City Police Not Allowed To Wear ‘Thin Blue Line’ Patches

Saint John police officers are being told to stop wearing “thin blue line” patches on their uniforms.

It comes after photos posted to social media last week showed officers wearing the controversial patch.

The force also tweeted a photo last September of an officer wearing the patch, which is a black and white Canadian flag.

City councillor David Hickey was one of several people to speak out against the post on social media.

“I was disappointed,” Hickey, who represents Ward 3, said during a phone interview on Monday.

“Certainly the narrative that has been standard across the country at this point is that these are not a good symbol in representing an attempt to build better relationships with communities.”

Hickey noted that other police forces, including the RCMP, have told their members not to wear the patch.

While some say the patch is a sign of solidarity among officers, others believe it shows an “us-versus-them” attitude.

In a tweet posted on Friday, the Saint John Police Force (SJPF) said the patch is not issued by the force, therefore members are not allowed to wear it.

“SJPF has uniform standards that only allow issued items on the uniform,” said the tweet. “Uniform standards have been reiterated with members and compliance to the standards are expected.”

Hickey said he is pleased with the response from the police force to date on this issue.

“If people are saying that this symbol makes them feel unwelcome or unsafe in the community then we should and have to take steps to make sure that everyone feels welcome and everyone feels safe in this community and this is an easy step to do it,” he said.