Encounter’s programs have always evolved based on what we learn about our participants and their needs around religious literacy skills. For years we have had professionals including teachers, and police officers come to our annual Discovery Week program to learn more about the communities they serve.
Last year we launched a new program designed specifically for police and we are thrilled to offer our Police Religious Literacy program again this year.
We talk often at Encounter about Contact Theory and how contact with communities other than our own can help counter negative stereotypes, and nurture positive relationships. But contact works best if there are a few key elements in place.
- Social status should be equal in the engagement
- The people are working towards a common goal
- Face-to-face is best
- Remembering that emotional connections often matter more than informational content
Much like our Discovery Week, our police program includes a series of visits where participating officers will be welcomed into various religious spaces. The officers will enter someone else’s building (a building which may feel unfamiliar) and play the role of students, hearing from an imam or rabbi, and asking questions. The common goal is to create better relationships and understanding and, thus, safer communities for us all.
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Community Relations
At Encounter, we have seen first-hand how entering religious spaces, having them explained, observing ritual and meeting with leaders can be an impactful experience that leaves a lasting impression on people. It transforms a black box into something you understand and which conjures up a positive memory of the Hindu you met, the ritual you saw, or the meal you shared.
The program incorporates the feedback of police services we’ve worked with and input from officers who had attended our Discovery Week. We’ve incorporated content which addresses how to be sensitive when entering someone’s home, what officers need to know if they need to search someone, what specific religious objects are, and the particular needs and worries of the community. We want to give police officers the tools and information they can use to avoid unintentional offenses and instead build understanding. When police are respected by the community, the community turns to the police, helping officers do their jobs more effectively and making our streets safer.
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Workplace Inclusion
One valuable way to foster community connections is when police staff resemble and are drawn from the communities they serve. These officers know their community from the inside and it fosters trust when you see officers who know your background and traditions.
Achieving a diverse staff requires that the work environment is welcoming to minority police officers. During the program, the officers will learn about how Western conceptions of what “religion” is can distort how we see non-Western traditions. We will learn about six key traditions – Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, and Indigenous Spirituality – to grow knowledge, comfort and familiarity. And a panel of minority officers will share their experiences and offer tips on creating a sense of belonging in the workplace.
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Why is it important that we share this information with you?
Police perform an absolute pivotal and difficult job in our communities and we at Encounter have been honoured to work with numerous police services. This program was conceived a year ago in tandem with some savvy police officers and it combines those officers’ insights, Encounter’s experience, and the perspectives of numerous religious community leaders to create a novel program on Canada’s police training scene.
We believe that religious literacy is important for everyone but is especially crucial for our social institutions. We are always humbled by the commitment of folks to develop skills which not only serve their personal relationships but also help them shape our social norms going forward. We want to celebrate the forward thinking of police services who are working towards inclusive community building.
If you know of police officers or services who might be interested in attending our Police Religious Literacy Program, we’d be delighted if you would share this with them. The program will take place from November 27-29 in Peel and registration has just opened. If you are a previous Discovery Week participant you can let them know that the visits, guest speakers and much of the information shared will be similar to your experiences.
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