The April 14 Butler Eagle published an Associated Press article regarding the State Police altering fitness requirements that previously excluded women.

The U.S. Justice Department handed down a ruling that awards $2 million to a compensation fund and compels the State Police to hire 65 women that didn’t pass the fitness standards that were determined to be not job-related.

As a Pennsylvania citizen and taxpayer, I find this quite disturbing. I have nothing against female police, but I most definitely have an interest in the most capable troopers patrolling our commonwealth.

Military and law enforcement duties often involve tasks that require substantial physical strength. The state police tests that were determined to not be job-related included running, push-ups, sit-ups and a vertical jump. These are basic physical capabilities that an officer might need in order apprehend a perpetrator that is resisting or fleeing arrest.

Seventy percent of female applicants were able to pass. So it’s OK to relax these standards for the 30% that failed and maybe allow a criminal to get away and go on to commit another crime?

The state police commissioner at the time of the lawsuit filing said “lowering standards would endanger safety and insult those who already met them.” I agree.

The communications director issued a statement saying “the Pennsylvania State Police are committed to hiring the most qualified applicants, with an emphasis on women and minority recruitment.”

I just about spit out my coffee when I read this. You either hire the most qualified applicant or you place an emphasis on a particular gender or race. You can’t do both. And if you are going to be emphasizing a particular gender or race, then by definition you have to de-emphasize another class of potential applicant. Wouldn’t this be discriminatory against white males? Private companies can choose to participate in this new “woke” agenda, but this has no place in our taxpayer-funded state police organization.

I call upon our federal senators and representatives to reign in the Department of Justice and reverse this judgment against the Pennsylvania State Police.

Just to clarify;

The claim: The Pennsylvania State Police have recently reversed a long-standing policy of discrimination against women recruits.

The facts: That’s not what happened. Activists within the U.S. Department of Justice forced the state police to accept a judgment lowering the physical fitness standards required to become a trooper. In addition, the already cash-strapped organization will be required to pay more than $2 million of taxpayer-funded dollars into a compensation fund. This action was based on a mischaracterization of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. As a result of this action, the state police standards of fitness have been compromised with the potential to jeopardize the safety of Pennsylvania citizens.

James West,

Slippery Rock Township