Toronto police officer apologizes for telling women not to dress 'like sluts'
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TORONTO - A Toronto police officer tasked with giving advice on keeping women safe on campus has now issued an apology for suggesting they could avoid sexual assault by not dressing "like sluts."
The comments were made during a campus safety information session at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School last month, which the officer was assigned by the force to lead.
The officer has written a letter of apology to the university's students and staff, Toronto police spokesman Mark Pugash said Thursday.
"The comments that were made are clearly diametrically opposed to the way in which we train our people, the way in which we train our investigators and the way in which we write about sexual assault," he said.
Pugash said the officer has been disciplined, but would not say what actions were taken. He would not comment on the contents of the letter, citing privacy issues.
Police launched an investigation into the matter following complaints from Osgoode Hall students and staff.
Joey Hoffman, a residence fellow and a member of Osgoode's student government, was among those who heard the officer's presentation at the Jan. 24 assembly.
"He prefaced it first by saying, 'I'm told I'm not supposed to say something like this but...' and then he went on to say women should avoid dressing like sluts in order to avoid being sexually harassed," Hoffman said.
"People were shocked, appalled and for the most part, silent, because we were so taken aback," he added.
Once the discussion ended, "people realized just how inappropriate (the comment) was," Hoffman said.
The officer's apology "is a step in the right direction," he said.
Others say it doesn't make up for the damage the officer's words have caused by casting blame on the victims of sexual assault.
"To have an organization like the police say that... it really decreases the likelihood that survivors of sexual assault will talk to anyone," said Mila Guidorizzi, a training co-ordinator at the university's Sexual Assault Survivors' Support Line.
Guidorizzi said she would like the officer to take one of their training sessions. "I think he could learn a lot from us," she said.
Darshika Selvasivam, vice-president of campaigns and advocacy for the York Federation of Students, said the officer's comments reveal a larger, systemic issue within the police service when it comes to dealing with sexual assault.
The current police training "clearly isn't sufficient enough because this officer clearly felt comfortable (making the comments) despite the training that he had received," she said.
Toronto police should go through a third-party audit of its policies and practices "so that victims of sexual assault don't continue to be alienated in this way," she said.
Pugash said the Toronto police force has worked with a number of outside organizations to come up with a training program for sexual assault investigators.
"The approach focuses on what the man is alleged to have done and how the assault occurred and to provide women with information they can use to protect themselves," he said.
York University said in a statement it has a good relationship with Toronto police, but was "surprised and shocked by the comment that was made by the constable."
"We at York certainly do not agree with it," the statement read.
