NSW Police have released a statement after a photo of an officer posing with a man wearing a t-shirt bearing a vile homophobic slur at the Sydney Royal Easter Show emerged on social media.
Revolting.
As reported by the Star Observer, the photo was originally shared as a Snapchat Story on April 9, 2023.
It depicts a cop posing with a bloke wearing a fucking foul t-shirt which reads: “Political correctness is for f*ggots”. Excuse me while I yack my hole up.
“He loved my shirt,” the caption claimed.
Look, I know it’s not nice to judge people based on what trousers they wear. But this image proves that any human being who wears those horrid jeans with ankle cuffs and panels which look like cheese graters simply cannot be trusted. I don’t make the rules.
The Snapchat user also shared other photos to his story, including one in which he appeared to mock a Fire and Rescue NSW fire truck that had been painted to feature the colours of the Progress Pride flag.
“Name a better combination,” the caption read, followed by a heap of crying laughing emojis, even though it’s not funny in the slightest.
The Snapchat user also shared a photo which appeared to be taken before the Sydney Royal Easter Show, standing in front of a white Mercedes-Benz.
“Let’s trigger some feminists at the Eastershow [sic],” the caption read.
I think we can all agree that this bloke needs to stick a fucking sock in it, no?
In a statement issued to the Star Observer, NSW Police said the cop in the photo didn’t realise what the shirt said and is “distressed” by the caption which claimed he loved it.
“This photograph is not reflective of the NSW Police Force ethos,” a NSW Police spokesperson told the publication.
“The NSW Police Force remains firmly committed to working with LGBTIQ+ communities to ensure a safe and inclusive community for all.”
The spokesperson also said NSW Police had been informed about the photo.
It’s honestly atrocious. Disgusting conduct like this — even if it’s inadvertent — only reinforces why there’s no place for cops at Pride.
As an institution, the police force has long targeted and vilified LGBTQIA+ folks, especially POC members of the community.
Mark Higginbotham, who worked as a cop in Sydney in the 1980s, told the Sydney Morning Herald last year that assaults against queer men were perpetrated by police officers.
Even Sydney Mardi Gras’s history is rooted in police violence. At the first march in 1978, what should’ve been a peaceful, festive day descended into violence after cops confiscated the lead float because marchers deviated from the permissible route.
More recently, footage shared to social media showed Victorian Police forming barricades around neo-Nazis and TERFs at that abhorrent protest against trans people outside Victoria’s Parliament House in March.
ACAB forever.
If you’d like to talk about the issues raised in this story, you can call the QLife LGBTI peer support hotline on 1800 184 527 or chat online.
QLife operates between 3pm and midnight daily.
Under 25? You can reach Kids Helpline at 1800 55 1800 or chat online.
