Following an official review prompted by a complaint, the Vancouver Police Board (VPB) has determined that the “thin blue line” patch cannot be worn by uniformed, on-duty Vancouver police officers, after hearing that some members of the public associate the symbol with “racism” and “colonialism.”
The review followed a Dec.1, 2021, complaint from a member of the public who saw a Vancouver police officer wearing the item and “perceived [it] to be an offensive patch,” said a Vancouver Police Department (VPD) report dated Jan. 2.
The report was submitted by Fiona Wilson, the VPD’s deputy chief, to the VPB Service and Policy Complaint Review Committee. The committee met on Jan. 19 to conclude its review of the complaint based on the Jan. 2 report….