As the Los Angeles Police Department celebrates its first Latina deputy chief, the lady stepping up to the accountability is taking the historical function severely in appearing younger ladies and women they may be able to succeed in what they set their intentions on.
Ruby Flores, a Mexican American lady raised in East Los Angeles and Norwalk, beamed with delight as she spoke with NBC4 about her new place. While ecstatic she effectively catapulted her occupation into a main management place, she mentioned that the load of the accountability related with this function in each the dept and the general public isn’t misplaced on her.
“I want to make sure if I can impact young girls and women in a positive way by being in this leadership position, then I want to do that and will continue to do that,” Flores mentioned.
Appointed to the dept in 1994, Flores mentioned she won pastime in becoming a member of the pressure whilst finding out prison justice at Long Beach State University. A less-than-ideal enjoy with a other police company in her non-public lifestyles additional cemented her function of turning into an officer.
“I was about 21 years old and I was in a car accident by myself and I was ultimately stranded and victimized by a stranger in an attempted assault,” Flores shared. “Ultimately, they found the suspect and I went to court. The suspect was arrested but the process is what was eye-opening to me because as a woman, I felt that I was not treated appropriately.”
According to Flores, the method made her really feel like she was once a suspect despite the fact that she was once the one that was once focused. That made her need to make a distinction.
“I wanted to come and be part of the change instead of contributing to that negative dialogue,” Flores mentioned.
She shared that her adventure with the LAPD was once met with some confusion via individuals who puzzled why she sought after to turn out to be an officer. She mentioned she knew getting into a male-dominated team of workers would come with some demanding situations however proved herself to be outstanding and was once briefly accredited via her friends.
“It’s been an honor,” Flores mentioned. “It’s been a long, uphill battle in some regards because it’s not easy to rise up these ranks and not everyone’s entitled to this rank, which is why I believe it to be an even greater honor.”
Now that she’s been appointed as a deputy chief, her function is to proceed making improvements to range and inclusion within the pressure in addition to encourage ladies and women to practice their ambitions, regardless of who tries to dissuade them.
“Young girls can do anything they want,” Flores mentioned. “They just have to be open to it, be confident and work hard, and they will realize that they’re capable of so much more than they thought they were.”
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