LAKEWOOD, NJ – The Lakewood Police Department paid tribute to its female officers this September in honor of National Police Woman Day.
Police Chief Gregory Meyer extended his appreciation to the department’s female officers, stating, “We acknowledge all the dedicated women of law enforcement, particularly some of the best who work here at Lakewood Police Department! Thank you for your service.”
National Police Woman Day is celebrated every September across the United States to highlight the contributions of female officers in law enforcement. The day aims to encourage a more gender-balanced police force, which currently consists of only about 10% women nationally.
The history of women in policing traces back to Marie Owens, hired by the Chicago Police Department in 1891. Owens was likely the first policewoman in the United States with arresting authority. Before her, police matrons in New York City, first hired in 1854, could search and guard female prisoners but had no arresting power.
In 1910, Alice Wells became the first American-born woman to be appointed as a police officer by the Los Angeles Police Department. Despite the challenges of quotas, discrimination, and workplace sexism that female officers faced initially, today they are actively involved in all facets of law enforcement.
The event in Lakewood aligned with a broader hope for increased female representation in law enforcement agencies across the country.