‘Copper with kippah’ recalls Muslim community warmth
THE CHIEF Superintendent for West Midlands Police, who observes Shabbat and has worn a kippah to work for seven years, has said that he has experienced little antisemitism while working with Muslim communities.
Speaking at the first national gathering of the Jewish Police Association (JPA) in Leeds last month, Mat Shaer, former Chair of the JPA, said:
“I deal a lot with Muslim communities who have understanding of faith and a respect for it.”
Ch Supt Shaer, who was not always as observant as he is today, also revealed his experiences when he first started wearing a kippah on the job.
“I was apprehensive at first, wondering how my colleagues would react,” he said. “By and large the reaction was positive — curiosity and interest as opposed to anything else.”
He said: “I became a police office 28 years ago in London. I kept kosher but suppose I was more secular. Increasingly though, I became more involved with Judaism and went on my own personal journey to becoming closer to my faith.”
As the first openly Orthodox police officer, he laid the groundwork for oth
ers wanting to join the force. He said: “I had to negotiate my way around not working on Shabbat and festivals at first but now, it’s accepted throughout the police. I take my own meals.
“But recently we held a big police dinner — our Diamond Awards — and they provided me with a fully kosher Hermolis meal.”
Ch Supt Shaer is the lead liaison with the Jewish community in the West Midlands. “That’s really helped when there’s been conflict in Israel resulting in hate crime in this country,” he said.