It is not where it wants to be yet, but the Cincinnati police department has made major strides in diversifying the department over the years. In WLWT's ongoing investigation Inside Your Police Force, we look at what contributed to the progress.The faces of Cincinnati police officers mirror many on the streets of Cincinnati: Black, brown, white, male and female. The department has come a long way since state Sen. Cecil Thomas' days on the force."I was an officer, and I didn't see a whole lot of individuals who looked like me on the police force back then. I think we were maybe 2%," he said. RELATED: Inside Your Police Force: A Black officer's perspective and how history impacts community relations todayHe was sworn in in 1974, not many years after the National Guard was called to Cincinnati in back to back years, for riots in 1967 and again in 1968 following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. There were deaths, dozens of injuries, hundreds of arrests and millions of dollars in damages. There were many signs the relationship between police and many of the city's neighborhoods was broken."I've seen significant change since my early years on the police force," Thomas said. He is a big part of the reason why. Thomas filed a formal complaint against Cincinnati police and the city that ended in federal court."His complaint way back in the late 70s, early 80s became a Justice Department investigation and then eventually a Justice Department set of findings, which are attached to the consent decree, that document a history of racial discrimination and sex discrimination," said civil rights attorney Al Gerhardstein.He represented the Sentinel Police Association for almost four decades, fighting for diversity in hiring and promotion and equality in discipline and assignments within the department. The consent decree he referenced is an agreement the city signed off on, declaring that after 1980, every recruit class should be at least 34% Black and 23% female, representing the city's workforce at the time.In 2020, 28% of the department is Black according to data provided to WLWT last month. Twenty three percent of the department is female.An additional consent decree, signed in 1987, aimed to increase diversity in promotions, ensuring that female officers and Black officers were adequately represented in the ranks of lieutenant, police captain and assistant police chief. Gerhardstein said it played a key role in diversifying the department, especially compared to other midwestern cities. Although significant progress has been made, the department now led by its third Black police chief still falls short of reflecting a city now made up of more than 45% Black people."The presence of those court orders has allowed us to stay vigilant about working toward the long-term goals of the decree," Gerhardstein said. "The reason it's still in place is that we've never met the long-term goal."Officer Louis Arnold with CPD's community relations unit said diversity is an important piece to mending the relationship with the community but community policing is also key. "We're called to serve and protect, and sometimes we forget that serve piece. We forget that service piece," he said. "It's one-on-one. It's when you roll into the community, you get out of your cruiser and you walk the community and you talk to people, and people begin to see you as more than there to enforce the law."The police department runs several community initiatives, including a summer cadet program that teaches youth what it means to be an officer and a citizen's police academy that teaches community members to better understand policing through an eight-week program. Arnold says those programs and positive interactions between police officers and community members that happen every day also play a role in building trust. "Think about the moment we're in," Gerhardstein said. "Your generation has a lot more to do."

It is not where it wants to be yet, but the Cincinnati police department has made major strides in diversifying the department over the years.

In WLWT's ongoing investigation Inside Your Police Force, we look at what contributed to the progress.

The faces of Cincinnati police officers mirror many on the streets of Cincinnati: Black, brown, white, male and female.

The department has come a long way since state Sen. Cecil Thomas' days on the force.

"I was an officer, and I didn't see a whole lot of individuals who looked like me on the police force back then. I think we were maybe 2%," he said.

RELATED: Inside Your Police Force: A Black officer's perspective and how history impacts community relations today

He was sworn in in 1974, not many years after the National Guard was called to Cincinnati in back to back years, for riots in 1967 and again in 1968 following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

There were deaths, dozens of injuries, hundreds of arrests and millions of dollars in damages. There were many signs the relationship between police and many of the city's neighborhoods was broken.

"I've seen significant change since my early years on the police force," Thomas said.

He is a big part of the reason why. Thomas filed a formal complaint against Cincinnati police and the city that ended in federal court.

"His complaint way back in the late 70s, early 80s became a Justice Department investigation and then eventually a Justice Department set of findings, which are attached to the consent decree, that document a history of racial discrimination and sex discrimination," said civil rights attorney Al Gerhardstein.

He represented the Sentinel Police Association for almost four decades, fighting for diversity in hiring and promotion and equality in discipline and assignments within the department.

The consent decree he referenced is an agreement the city signed off on, declaring that after 1980, every recruit class should be at least 34% Black and 23% female, representing the city's workforce at the time.

In 2020, 28% of the department is Black according to data provided to WLWT last month. Twenty three percent of the department is female.

An additional consent decree, signed in 1987, aimed to increase diversity in promotions, ensuring that female officers and Black officers were adequately represented in the ranks of lieutenant, police captain and assistant police chief. Gerhardstein said it played a key role in diversifying the department, especially compared to other midwestern cities.

Although significant progress has been made, the department now led by its third Black police chief still falls short of reflecting a city now made up of more than 45% Black people.

"The presence of those court orders has allowed us to stay vigilant about working toward the long-term goals of the decree," Gerhardstein said. "The reason it's still in place is that we've never met the long-term goal."

Officer Louis Arnold with CPD's community relations unit said diversity is an important piece to mending the relationship with the community but community policing is also key.

"We're called to serve and protect, and sometimes we forget that serve piece. We forget that service piece," he said. "It's one-on-one. It's when you roll into the community, you get out of your cruiser and you walk the community and you talk to people, and people begin to see you as more than there to enforce the law."

The police department runs several community initiatives, including a summer cadet program that teaches youth what it means to be an officer and a citizen's police academy that teaches community members to better understand policing through an eight-week program.

Arnold says those programs and positive interactions between police officers and community members that happen every day also play a role in building trust.

"Think about the moment we're in," Gerhardstein said. "Your generation has a lot more to do."

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Inside Your Police Force: CPD's progress through the years and the push for more - WLWT Cincinnati