The NSW Police Force has come a long way in terms of female representation and advancement in recent decades. While the job of a cop is not for everyone, Tamworth Inspector Kylie Endemi has forged a 24-year career in line of, at times perilous, work. She has a passion for supporting women who have, likewise, heralded the call to protect the community on the thin blue line. Recently, Inspector Endemi spoke to the Oxley High Girls Academy about the challenges and advantages of being a policewoman.
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Kylie Endemi is a Chief Inspector with Oxley police and has worked in the force for 24 years.
On International Women’s Day, she spoke to the Oxley High Girls Academy, a program designed to ensure Aboriginal girls finish Year 12 and find post school work or study.
She acknowledged her start with the force had been made easier by the women who had come before.
As a highly ranked local policewoman, she saw part of her role as making it a little bit easier for the women to follow.
Inspector Endemi said the main challenge she faced when she joined the force came from within.
“I think the feeling you place upon yourself that there’s an extra pressure to prove yourself, to prove yourself as just as able as your male colleagues that you work with everyday,” she said.
“The fact that there wasn’t a lot of women back then, so there wasn’t a lot of that female support network that we are blessed with now.
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“Whilst I felt pressure, I think a lot of that was myself placing that on me, as opposed to anybody else doing that.
“It’s certainly a lesson I’ve learnt through my career that you need to remove that pressure you place on yourself because we can do absolutely everything that the blokes can.”
She said policing obviously wasn’t a career for everyone, but she said there was a message for all of the girls, regardless of what path they chose.
“There are no barriers for anyone who has that drive,” she said.