Gay police officer 'disappointed' about being unable to march in uniform at Pride London parade

London police Const. Anthea Fordyceknows how it feels to live in fear because of her sexuality. Fordyceis gay, and was born in the Republic of Ireland where homosexuality was onceillegal.

"That's a chapter in my life where I couldn't be who I was;I was fearful of identifying myself as a gay person," Fordyce told CBC Radio's London Morning on Friday.

• Listen tothe interview with Const. AntheaFordyceon LondonMorning

At 19, Fordyce left Ireland to pursue a policing career in the comparatively liberal London, England. That's where she met her wife, also a police officer. The two havemarched in uniform at Pride parades in the UK and, later, in Canadasomething that Fordycesays felt like a victory.

"We've been to Pride parades all over the worldand police being part of that was such an important piece," Fordyce said.

"People recognizing that we are not where we were 50 years ago;we have a police service that supports us, that encourages inclusion and equality."

In a news release, Pride London Festival president Andrew Rosser said the decision was made in an effort to "remove additional barriers" for those participating.He said the group's members were concerned about thenumber of uniformed officers inprevious parades.

Chief John Pare said London police will respect the request.

To Fordyce, the 'large number' of officers should be something to celebrate. She says officers' eagerness to marchregardless of their sexualitysignals that police believe in supporting the Pride community.

And so, while Fordyce said she thinks it's important to listen to Pride London'sconcerns, she hopes the decision won't be permanent.

"I just hope that we can move past this bump in the road, and really work on those relationships," she said.

"We want to continue to take down barriers that people may see with the police, and be seen as a huge community partner to all communities."

For now, Fordyce saysbeing unable to wear her uniform means that, once again, she's hiding a part of herself.

"It's a huge layer of my identity, so I feel like I've been asked to put that piece aside," she said, adding that, as a high school resource officer, she feels a particular commitment to being a role model for students.

"I always tell them, respect who you are, respect others, treat everyone how you wish to be treated," she said.

"I wouldn't betrue to myself or the students that I represent from my schools, if I were to allow myself to not be true to who I am, which is a police officer. I'm proud to wear my uniform and I'm here to help people. Icertainly don't want people to be fearful of us."