Going purple to inform the public

October is Domestic Violence Awareness month and two female officers in Airway Heights are promoting it in a special way. Officers Erika Rose and Erin Johnson both dyed their hair purple, the color that represents Domestic Violence Awareness.

Rose has been in Airway Heights for around three years and grew up in the Spokane Valley. She had wanted to be a police officer her whole life and loves the job because she can help people.

Johnson joined Airway Heights in 2016 and has worked in law enforcement for about 18 years now. Born and raised in Montana, she went on ride alongs with the Missoula Police Department when she was just 14 years old.

The decision to change their hair into an exotic color was not just thought up overnight. Johnson had seen law enforcement agencies in the New York City area had allowed officers to have purple hair in honor of the occasion and wondered if they would be allowed to do the same thing. So both officers approached Police Chief Lee Bennett about the idea about 8-9 months ago to get permission to change their hair colors.

"He gave us the approval right away," Rose said. "He just said that we had to get it done professionally and not try to do it ourselves."

When October approached, Rose and Johnson scheduled their hair appointments together and got it done at the same time.

It is quite the difference for the officers as Rose usually has dark hair and Johnson has platinum blonde.

"Sometimes I look in the mirror and I forget that my hair is purple," Rose said.

The officers have had good responses to the change as it has made people ask questions.

"The responses have been amazing," Rose said. "It has made me be able to talk about domestic violence with people more."

The department has teamed up with the YWCA's End the Silence movement for the month of October. This year is the second annual campaign for Spokane.

According to their website, "The End the Silence campaign goal is to stop victim blaming and entreat the community to stand alongside victims and survivors of domestic violence as safe allies and remind them that they are not alone."

"I want people to feel like they can come forward and talk to us," Rose said. "If you hear or see something, you can talk to law enforcement. People don't want to start a family conflict but anytime you can come forward, you could save someone's life."

There could be a possibility that the purple hair returns next year for the two female officers, but the decision is yet to be made at this point.

Grace Pohl can be reached at [email protected].