For the Sikh community, it is a moment of pride as the New York Police Department (NYPD) has allowed the officers of this community to turbans and keep their beards which are symbols of their religious faith while on duty.
New York City Police Commissioner, James O'Neill, made this announcement and stated that it is a move towards making NYPD 'as diverse as possible'.
Commenting on this the Sikh Officers Association tweeted this:
Thank you @NYPDONeill for allowing Sikh Officers to wear a turban in the @NYPDnews. This is a proud moment for Sikh Community. pic.twitter.com/ArKkwVWj8G
— Sikh Officers Assoc. (@SikhOfficers) December 28, 2016
According to the Police Commissioner, NYPD has 160 Sikh police officers in their 34,500 member police force. Until now, these officers were allowed to wear the Patka, a small head cover under the official hat or cap.
In the month of April, the US army permitted Sikh personnel to wear their turbans, but it was more a waiver than a policy change. Apart from NYPD, Washington police department among few other police departments also allows their Sikh officers to wear turbans.