Fabienne “Fae” Brooks (She/Her)
by Faduma Mohamed
Fabienne “Fae” Brooks did not simply enter law enforcement but she busted the door down and flung it open for others to come through. In 1980, she became the first Black woman to be employed on a commission by King County Sheriff’s office in Washington state. During a period when police departments were predominantly made up of white men, just the presence of Brooks broke the mold. She did not stop at the first; she became one of the leading figures in policing in the Pacific Northwest.
Originally from Harlem, New York Brooks was firmly planted in the Pacific Northwest in 1969, where she launched her game changing career in criminal justice in a time when Black women were institutionally denied positions of leadership in law enforcement. Nevertheless she was promoted through the ranks to become the first Black woman detective and she also became the Chief of the Criminal Investigations Division before retiring in 2002 after 26 years of service.
Brook’s work was not merely symbolic; it was essential. She was one of the first detectives who investigated the infamous Green River Killer case, a serial murder case that plagued Washington state for many decades. Her participation in this landmark case solidified her image as a sharp, compassionate, yet merciless investigator. Brooks was not just solving crimes, she was changing the culture of policing. She has become a national face of community oriented policing, advocating for practices that foster good relations between the law enforcers and the marginalized communities. As Co-Director of Law Enforcement Programs for the National Coalition Building Institute, she trained law enforcement officials throughout the United States in strategies to decrease racial bias and enhance community rapport.
Brooks’ badge is not the only thing that she left behind. She trained hundreds of officers, especially women and BIPOC, and inspired them to enter and transform law enforcement. She influenced the contemporary attempts to diversify the police, including the national efforts to enhance the number of women in the sphere of policing. As a proud daughter of the Pacific Northwest and a fighter for equity in public service, Fabienne “Fae” Brooks has made history and made it better. Her name may not be in all textbooks but her imprints are everywhere in the policies, people and potentials she helped form. Brooks reminds us that justice is not merely about administration of law, it is changing the system from within.
