Black Lives Matter

Roger Hirst, Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Essex, said: “Racism, or any form of discrimination, must not be tolerated. The violence we’ve seen in the US over the past week is very alarming and is a reminder of what can happen if policing and communities don’t work together.

“In this country we police by consent and our communities and our police force work together for the good of all.

“Essex Police takes racism and discrimination very seriously with the Chief Constable leading on the Forces’ Diversity and Inclusion work supported by staff associations and a dedicated Diversity and Inclusion team.

“Essex County Fire and Rescue Service are equally committed to the tackling racism and discrimination. In our Fire and Rescue Plan there is a clear commitment to have a safe and diverse workforce who we enable to perform well in a supportive culture underpinned by excellent training. Tackling bullying and discrimination of any kind is absolutely key to doing that.”

“In Essex we have seen several peaceful protests. In some other parts of the country we have seen criminal acts being carried out in the name of protests and police officers have been attacked and injured for doing their jobs. This is completely unacceptable.”