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DEPARTMENT FOR NEARLY 15 YEARS. HE WAS SHOCKED TO LEARN HE WOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO WEAR HIS POLICE UNIFORM IN THE PRIDE PARADE. ORGANIZERS SAY THE UNIFORM CAN UPSET SOME MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY. >> I WANTED TO BE A POLICE OFFICER SINCE I WAS THREE YEARS OLD. EMILY: OFFICER JEFF KUHLMANN IS LIVING OUT HIS CHILDHOOD DREAM, SERVING ON THE SACRAMENTO POLICE DEPARTMENT. >> THOUGHT IT WAS FUN, I WANTED TO HELP PEOPLE, BE THERE FOR PEOPLE AND JUST BE THERE FOR THE COMMUNITY. EMILY: NOW, KUHLMANN, WHO IS GAY, SAYS THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY IS EXCLUDING HIM AND HIS FELLOW OFFICERS >> PEOPLE SAY THAT THEY’RE NOT COMFORTABLE WITH PEOPLE IN UNIFORM, AND THAT’S ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE’RE TRYING TO FIX. WE WANT TO MAKE SURE PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE WALKING UP TO A POLICE OFFICER WHEN THEY SEE THEM IN THE POLICE UNIFORM. EMILY: THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR FOR THE SACRAMENTO LGBTQ COMMUNITY CENTER, WHICH HOSTS THE SACRAMENTO PRIDE PARADE AND FESTIVAL, SAYS POLICE IN UNIFO CAN MAKE SOME FEEL UNSAF >> THERE’S A LOT OF UNREST IN OUR COMMUNITY RIGHT NOW. THERES NOT A LOT OF TRUST IN POLICE INSTITUTIONS. NOT ONLY IN THE LGBTQ COMMUNITY, BUT CERTAINLY IN THE BLACK COMMUNITY AND OTHER COMMUNITIES OF COLOR. AND THOSE FOLKS ARE ALSO MARGINALIZED IN OUR COMMUNITY. EMILY: SACRAMENTO POLICE DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN LAST YEAR’S PRIDE EVENTS WHICH TOOK PLACE JUST A FEW MONTHS AFTER THE DEADLY POLICE SHOOTING OF STEPHON CLARK, AN UNARMED SUSPECT. A YEAR LATER, PRIDE ORGANIZERS SAY OFFICERS IN UNIFORM CAN BE UPSETTIN >> A LOT OF YOUNG PEOPLE OF COLOR, TRANSGENDER YOUTH OR YOUTH EXPERIENCING HOMELESSNESS, THEY DON’T FEEL SAFE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN OFFICER’S UNIFOR EMILY: THE POLICE CHIEF AND LGBTQ OFFICERS MET WITH MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY CENTER, HOPING TO COMPROMISE. PRIDE ORGANIZERS SAY POLICE IN REGULAR CLOTHES ARE WELCOME AT NEXT WEEKEND’S EVENTS BUT FOR OFFICER JEFF KULHMANN, HIS UNIFORM IS ALSO PART OF WHO HE IS >> I’VE BEEN TO TOO MANY PRIDE EVENTS IN THE PAST WHERE IVE -- I’VE BEEN IN THE UNIFORM WHERE I CAN EXPRESS WHO I AM AS A POLICE OFFICER FOR MY CITY. I WOULD LIKE TO BE ABLE TO CONTINUE THAT. EMILY: PRIDE ORGANIZERS SAY POLICE IN UNIFORM WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO HAVE A RECRUITMENT TABLE NEXT WEEKEND OFFICER KULHMANN SAYS OFFICERS WERE TOLD IF THEY DID, THERE COULD BE PROTESTS. WALTER: DID PRIDE ORGANIZERS SAY IF THEY’LL EVER ALLOW OFFICERS BACK INTO THE PARADE? EMILY: WHEN I TALKED TO THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HE SAYS IF POLICE CAN BUILD TRUST WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, HE HOPES THEY CAN RETURN. THE OFFICER WE SPOKE WITH SAYS WALKING IN THE PARADE IN HIS UNIFORM IS A WAY THE DEPARTMENT HAD HOPED TO DO THAT WA

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Sacramento police officers in uniform will not be allowed to participate in this year’s Pride parade and festival.Organizers said officers in uniform can make some people feel uncomfortable. One officer, who is gay, said he was shocked to find out he and his co-workers are unwelcome.“People said that they’re not comfortable with officers in uniform,” said Officer Jeff Kuhlmann. “That’s one of the things that we’re trying to fix. We want to make sure people are comfortable walking up to a police officer when they see them in a police uniform.”Kuhlmann has been on the force for nearly 15 years.“I wanted to be a police officer since I was probably 3 or 4 years old,” he said. “I thought it was fun. I wanted to help people, be there for people and just be there for the community.”David Heitstuman, the executive director for the Sacramento LGBT Community Center, said police in uniform can make some feel unsafe.The community center hosts the Pride parade and festival.“There is a lot of unrest in our community right now,” Heitstuman said. “There’s not a lot of trust in police institutions. Not just in the LGBTQ community, but certainly in the black community and other communities of color. Those folks are also marginalized in our community.”Sacramento police did not participate in last year’s Pride events, which took place a few months after the deadly police shooting of Stephon Clark, an unarmed suspect.A year later, Pride organizers said officers in uniform can be upsetting.“A lot of young people of color, transgender youth or youth experiencing homelessness don’t feel safe in the presence of an officer’s uniform,” Heitstuman said. The police chief and LGBT officers met with members of the community center, hoping to compromise.Pride organizers said police in regular clothes are welcome at next weekend’s events.But for officer Kuhlmann, his uniform is also part of who he is.“I’ve been to too many Pride events in the past where I’ve been in the uniform and been able to be part of those events where I can express who I am as a police officer for my city,” he said. “I would like to be able to continue that.”Heitstuman said it’s possible officers in uniform will be allowed to participate in future Pride events.He said he feels the department needs to build trust in the community first.Kuhlmann said walking in the Pride parade is something that helps build community relations.