Missoula Police Beef Up Outreach to Gays

The GLBT Community Liaison program in Missoula, Mont., is getting a makeover. With a website, posters, radio spots, and billboards, the Missoula Police Department and community partners are campaigning to stop bias and report it when it occurs, according to New West Missoula.

The effort has its roots in the work of a Missoula police officer who reached out to GLBT Missoulans in 2005 after some gays -- and young men and women perceived to be gay -- were brutally beaten in unprovoked attacks. The officer drew up a form for reporting hate crimes and bias, said Missoula police chief Mark Muir.

Since the program began, only two complaints of bias harassment have been filed, and Muir is concerned that residents are unaware of available resources, according to New West.

The program was thrust into the limelight after being featured in a documentary on Logo in January 2007, but its visibility has since waned. (The Advocate)

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