Exploring Racial Profiling as a Policing and Human Rights Problem in Toronto

by

Nwora Azubike

A Practicum submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies of

The University of Manitoba

In partial fulfillment of the requirement of the degree of

MASTER OF HUMAN RIGHTS

Faculty of Law

University of Manitoba

Winnipeg

Copyright © 2021 by Nwora Azubike

i

Abstract

This paper explores racial profiling as a policing and human rights problem in Toronto. The

rationale behind this paper is founded on the racial equity protests and emotional outburst of the

Black youth in Toronto expressing decades of police brutalities, fear, pain and grief from legacies

of slavery and colonialism.1 The youth’s views and the historical relations of race are critical to

people-police relations in fostering trust and collaboration amid the struggles of racial profiling. To

accomplish this, I embarked on review of secondary sources by consulting current literature on

racial profiling by the Toronto Police Service. I also analysed different sources such as, government

archives, books, policy data, journals and newspapers. I also integrated knowledge gained through

my practicum experience, especially investigative skills, reading and summarizing case files at the

Manitoba Human Rights Commission. This is not an exhaustive literature about the racial profiling

of the Black People in Toronto by the Toronto Police Service. However, the content of the paper

represents my research and contributions. Based on the literature reviewed, I concluded that: (1)

Racial profiling is borne out of the systemic racism that has ridden every fabric of the Canadian

society, (2) Racial profiling is more prevalent among Afro-Canadians than other racialized youths,

(3) Black youths are disconnected from the Toronto Police Service and government is swamped

with piles of unimplemented policies that would have aided youth collaborations and synergy with

the police, (4) The role of government and launched police initiatives are not sufficient, which begs

for more research and advocacy on racial profiling of racialized communities in Toronto. The

recommendations include ideas for inclusion, integration and changes to policy makers and the

police.

1 Natasha Simpson, “Canada has Race-Based Police Violence too. We Don’t Know How Much”. Tyee, n.p, June 2,

2020, https://thetyee.ca/Analysis//2020/06/02/Canada-Race-Based-Violence/

ii

Acknowledgements

First and foremost, I thank God for His mercies and fortitude in helping me complete my

practicum successfully, and then I thank my parents, wife, and children for their love and

encouragement. My wife stood by my side to see that my Practicum paper was completed

successfully, provided me with the help I needed, and was understanding of my absences. As we

dealt with the problems of distance and keeping up with the family, she shared important ideas

with me.

Professor Kjell Anderson, my lecturer, and Director, Master of Human Rights at the University

of Manitoba’s Faculty of Law, deserves recognition for his mentorship during my graduate

studies. His warm disposition and commitment to producing well-educated graduates inspired me

to work even harder to achieve my goals. I hold him in high regard for his wise counsel during

trying times.

I would like to express my deepest appreciation to Professor Grace Ukasoanya, Assistant

Professor, Educational Administration, Foundation and Psychology (EAF&P), Faculty of

Education, University of Manitoba. Professor Ukasoanya has been an invaluable academic

advisor to me during my Practicum. I am grateful for her heartfelt patience, acceptance, and

unwavering confidence in me, over the rigours of my graduate studies and practicum. She

instilled in me a sense of resilience and accomplishment.

Professors Sean Byrne and Laura E. Reimer, both of the Arthur Mauro Institute for Peace and

Justice at St. Paul’s College, University of Manitoba, have been extremely helpful during my

graduate studies. I am particularly grateful to Professor Sean Byrne for his thought - provoking

tutorials on Peace and Conflict Studies, which straddle the line between promoting human rights

and social justice. In addition, I appreciate Professor Reimer’s guidance as the Master of Human

Rights Practicum Coordinator.

iii

Dedication

Teachers and parents provide strong assistance, tutelage, and experience to ensure that

educational processes run smoothly. Those formative years in school were not without many

difficulties, but when you have someone who believes in you, you can believe in yourself.

Through this Practicum, I dedicate my efforts to my late father, Ichie. Samuel Osita, Azubike, a

teacher, whose strengthened wisdom of experience and unwavering commitment to education,

inspired me.

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TABLE OF CONTENT

Abstract ……………………………………………………………………… i

Acknowledgments ……………………………………………………………… ii

Dedication ……………………………………………………………………… iii

1.0 Background……………………………………………………………… 1

1.1 Definition of Racial Profiling…………………………………….. 2

1.2 The Concept of Racial Profiling………………………………….. 3

1.3 Characteristics of Racial Profiling………………………………... 6

1.4 The Prevalence of Racial Profiling……………………………….. 7

1.5 Rationale for Selecting the City of Toronto as a Case Study…….. 8

2.0 State of Black Youths in Toronto………………………………………. 9

2.1 Impact of Racial Profiling………………………………………… 12

3.0 Policing and Diversity………………………………………………….... 13

3.1 Racism and Policing of Multicultural City of Toronto…………… 17

3.2 Street Checking…………………………………………………… 18

3.3 The Benefits of Street Checking………………………………….. 20

4.0 Human Rights, Government, and Toronto Police Department………. 21

(Human Rights Inquiry)

4.1 Role of the Government…………………………………………… 23

5.0 Lesson Learned that could Inform Better Black Youth – Police

Relationship in Toronto…………..……………………………………….24

5.1 Implication of Racial Profiling……………………………………. 25

5.2 Over – representation of Black Youth in the Justice System……... 29

5.3 Opportunities for improving Relations……………………………. 31

6.0 Policy Recommendation…………………………………………………. 32

v

7.0 Conclusion………………………………………………………………..... 33

1

1.0 Background

As protests against police violence and racial profiling against the Black youth intensify in

Toronto, the Supreme Court of Canada, the Human Rights Tribunals,2 and the Lawmakers3 demand

for change in the system. Despite some findings of the analysis of the police officers’ experiences

in policing Black communities, and their suggestions to improve strained relations,4there is need

to re-channel policy, practice and scholarly resources to exploring how Toronto Police and Black

youth could be reconnected, as a way to mitigate racial profiling. This paper explores the rising

issues of racial profiling between the Toronto Police Service and the Black community in Toronto.

It further recognizes the need to reconnect the Toronto Police Service (TPS) and the Black

Community with a view to mitigating racial profiling and promoting the inclusion and overall well-

being of Black communities.

For the purpose of this paper, profiling, police profiling and racial profiling are used

interchangeably to portray the extent of the stretch in practices or committal of the offence as earlier

stated in the definition of racial profiling offered by the Ontario Human Rights Commission and

as codified in Canadian laws. The term “racialized or racialized people” are also sometimes used

in this paper to refer to people of color, of which Black people, and other groups such as, Indigenous

People, Arabs, Asians, Latin Americans or Muslims, etc., are among.5 The use of the term

“racialized” acknowledges the fact that the barriers “racialized people” face are rooted in the

historical and contemporary racial prejudice of society and are not a product of their own identities

or shortcomings.6 While Black people fits among other groups termed racialized people, the term

“Black or Blackness” is not a man,7 which raises the question of the biological, psychological and

2 Ontario Human Right Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling in law enforcement”, (Executive

Summary). OHRC, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/policy-eliminating-racial-profiling-law-enforcement#_Toc17977340 3 Government of Canada, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism against Afro-Canadians,

Indigenous Canadians and Asian Canadians”, Government of Canada, https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-

heritage/corporate/transparency/open-government/standing-committee/chagger-whole-senate-addressing-ending-

systemic-racism/emergency-debate-reports-acts-racism-afro-indigenous-asian-canadians.html 4Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, “Black Males’ Perceptions of and Experiences with the Police in Toronto”, Google Scholar, Retrieved on March 7, 2021, from,

https://scholar.google.com/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=Black+Males%27+Perceptions+of+and+Experiences+

with+the+Police+in+Toronto+&btnG= 5Racialized Documents City of Ottawa, “Racialized People Equity and Inclusion Lens”, Version 2016, P.g.18.

Accessed on November 20, 2020 fromhttps://documents.ottawa.ca/sites/documents/files/racializd_ss_en.pdf 6Racialized Documents City of Ottawa, “Racialized People Equity and Inclusion Lens”, p.g .9 7 Flora Opuka Ohlsen, “Defining Blackness”, Roskilde University- Malmo University, p.g. 33

https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/16199579.pdf

2

cultural identity of the black.8 According to Ohlsen (2013), “A black person is known as anyone

with African ancestry”.9 While black persons can also identify as mixed race, or be a recent arrival

from the Caribbean, Europe, or African countries,10 they may be descendants of several generations

of Canadians.11Statistics Canada’s data also show that Canada is the top place of birth for the black

population, and in 2016, more than four 4 out of 10 Black people were born in Canada.12

This paper is structured to reflect base themes and sub themes. While the base themes in

bold, represent the general concepts or topics, sub themes denote more specific topics. The outline

of the themes are as follows:

1.1 Definition of Racial Profiling

Specifically the Ontario Human Rights Commission defines racial profiling as “any act or

omission related to actual or claimed reasons of safety, security or public protection, by an

organization or individual in a position of authority, that results in greater scrutiny, lesser scrutiny

or other negative treatment based on race, color, ethnic origin, ancestry, religion, place of origin or

related stereotypes”.13 Race is the driving force behind racial profiling, even though Race is a

“social construct” and most societies develop race ideas based on geographical, historical, political,

economic, social and cultural factors as well as physical characteristics, but none of these can

legitimately be used to classify groups of people.14

8 Ibid, P.g 33 9 Ibid, P.g 34 10Racialized Documents City of Ottawa, “Racialized People Equity and Inclusion Lens”, p.g 3, and Statistics

Canada, “Black history month…by numbers”, Government of Canada, (Sub headings “Place of Birth and ethnic

origin”, Accessed on March 23, 2021 from https://www.statcan.gc.ca/eng/dai/smr08/2020/smr08_248 , and Maylor,

Uvanney. “What Is the Meaning of ‘Black’? Researching ‘Black’ Respondents.” Ethnic and racial studies, (‘Black’

as political signifier) published January 8, 2009): pg. 369, Accessed on March 23, 2021

https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870802196773 11Racialized Documents City of Ottawa, “Racialized People Equity and Inclusion Lens”, p.3, and Statistics Canada,

“Diversity of the Black population in Canada: An overview”, Government of Canada (Sub- heading “Context”)

Accessed on March 23, 2021 from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-657-x/89-657-x2019002-eng.htm 12 Statistics Canada, “Black history month…by numbers”, Government of Canada, (Sub-heading “Place of Birth

and ethnic origin), n.p. 13 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling in law enforcement”, OHRC, Accessed

on December 3, 2020 from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/policy-eliminating-racial-profiling-law-

enforcement#_Toc17977392 14Government of Canada, “What we heard — Informing Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy”, (subheading, Glossary), Government of Canada, Modified on June 27,2019, Accessed on November 20, 2020 from

https://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/Campaign/anti-racism-engagement/what-we-heard.html

3

1.2 The Concept of Racial Profiling

Racial profiling can also result from individual actions stemming from the unintended and

sometimes unconscious consequences of a discriminatory system,15 which also establishes

‘systemic racism’. This fact implies that racial profiling can be linked to systemic racism or

discrimination. Systemic racism can be described as patterns of behavior, policies or practices that

are part of the structures of an organization, which create or perpetuate disadvantage for racialized

persons.16Black Canadians are faced with different challenges of systemic racism compared to

other racialized youths,17 such as racial profiling. In Toronto, this continued struggle for justice

and reform that Black people face are not unconnected to disparities and discriminatory law

enforcement.18 Systemic racism does not mean that all Canadians have a discriminatory or unequal

tendency. Rather, racism as an institutionalized structure could unconsciously establish

unreasonable barriers and insurmountable challenges for racialized youth. For example, Hon.

Senator Josée Forest-Niesing has noted that these systemic dynamics are expressed as distrust of

youth by police, who tend to deny them social justice.19 Consequently, the youth view police with

distrust20, and with this problem of trust visible in the youth-police relationship, the implications

beg the question of youth choice to access the safety resources which the police provide. On the

other hand, what does the lack of trust do to police choice to assess the diverse community

development assets which the youth offer? Without an incentive to change some of the police

misconduct or to reconcile the police with the youth, perhaps, it could be a ‘lose-lose case’ for

Canadian government and society.

In 1993, a finding of the Commission on Systemic Racism in the Ontario Criminal Justice

System indicated that racialized characteristics, especially those of black people, provoke suspicion

15Ontario Human Rights Commission, Racism and racial discrimination: Systemic discrimination(fact sheet)”,

OHRC, Accessed on November 20, 2020, from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/racism-and-racial-discrimination-systemic-

discrimination-fact-sheet. 16Ibid, n.p. 17 Government of Canada, “What we heard — Informing Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy”, (subheading, Black

Canadians have a unique experience of racism), n.p. 18 City of Toronto, “Toronto Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism”, City of Toronto, p.g,33, Accessed from

https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-109127.pdf 19Hon. Josée Forest-Niesing, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism against Afro-Canadians,

Indigenous Canadians and Asian Canadians”, (Para. 2).Government of Canada, Modified on June 18, 2020,

Accessed on November 20, 2020 fromhttps://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/corporate/transparency/open-

government/standing-committee/chagger-whole-senate-addressing-ending-systemic-racism/emergency-debate-

reports-acts-racism-afro-indigenous-asian-canadians.html. 20Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, “Black Males’ Perceptions of and Experiences with the Police in Toronto”, p.g,111.

4

by the police. These characteristics that could draw police attention include sex (male), ethnicity,

the make and condition of car, location, dress, and perceived lifestyle.21 Black people that are

perceived to have many of these features are at high risk of being stopped on foot or in vehicles,22

but there can be no question that racial inequality is fundamentally based on power relations

between the dominant ruling groups in the society and the racialized communities.23 There are also

some power relations in the practice of racial profiling, which tends to destroy the ‘protected

characteristics’ of an individual. These protected characteristics of human persons, as outlined by

the Equality and Human Rights Commission, include but are not limited to race, religion, ethnicity

and ancestry.24 The United Nations International Human Rights Standards for Law Enforcement

provides that while protecting and serving the community, police shall not unlawfully discriminate

against anyone on the basis of these protected characteristics.25 The concept of racial profiling is

about whom has the power to racially profile the passive victims based on their protected

characteristics and police officers have such powers.

The Toronto police officers have the legal power to stop and arrest anyone based on

reasonable grounds that the particular person is involved in the crime under investigation.26 In

codifying such powers, Section 495 of the Canadian Criminal Code states categorically that while

a police officer can arrest someone where there is a reasonable ground that the person has

committed an indictable offence, an officer has the power to also stop, question or arrest someone

based on the reasonable grounds that the particular person is about to commit an indictable

offence.27 An officer can also arrest a person found committing an indictable offence or in the event

21Omar Ha-Redeye, “Systemic Racism as a Basis for Excluding Evidence”, Published on February 12, 2017,

Retrieved from, http://www.slaw.ca/2017/02/12/systemic-racism-as-a-basis-for-excluding-evidence/ 22Omar Ha-Redeye, “Systemic Racism as a Basis for Excluding Evidence”, Published on February 12, 2017,

Retrieved from, http://www.slaw.ca/2017/02/12/systemic-racism-as-a-basis-for-excluding-evidence/ 23Blalock, H. M. “A Power Analysis of Racial Discrimination.” Social Forces 39, no. 1 (1960): 53-59. Accessed

January 19, 2021. doi:10.2307/2573575. 24 Equality and Human Rights Commission, “Protected Characteristics”, Equality and Human Rights Commission,

updated on December 30, 2020, Accessed on January 5, 2021, from

https://www.equalityhumanrights.com/en/equality-act/protected-characteristics 25United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Centre for Human Rights, “International Human Rights

Standards for Law Enforcement: A pocketbook on human rights for police” OHCHR, Pg.4, Retrieved on November

30, 2020,https://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Publications/training5Add1en.pdf 26Meng, Yunliang. “Racially Biased Policing and Neighborhood Characteristics: A Case Study in Toronto, Canada.”

Cybergeo (February 7, 2014).

https://doi.org/10.4000/cybergeo.26165 27 Government of Canada, “Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46”, Justice Laws Website, Government of Canada,

Accessed on December 15, 2020 from https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/section-

5

the officer has a warrant for the person(s) arrest. Such police action to ensure the protection and

security of all individuals and property in Ontario is not usually controversial when it is carried out

in a lawful manner with an emphasis on public safety. It is expected that lawful and uncontroversial

actions in discharge of police duty would drive more persons to demonstrate respect for the

police.28

Apart from these legal grounds, the police should not be seen investigating or arresting

innocent people on baseless grounds of mere suspicion, but the problem lies on a presumption that

a police officer could be bias-free in forming reasonable grounds that someone is about to commit

an indictable offence.29 If racism is evident in the Canadian society, then there could be some police

officers who are biased. Humans can be biased, whether consciously or unconsciously, towards

certain social groups. Our biases could improve as we evolve.30 The concept of racism can be

classified into two categories, namely, attitudinal or behavioral;31 however, it is important to note

that racism is also structural in nature, in that it is woven into nearly all of our social systems,

institutions, and policies for the benefit of Whites at the expense of people of color.32 Biases or

micro aggressions are connected to pathological stereotypes, power structures, systemic racism,

and multiple forms of racial prejudice.33 The police officers enforce law and order in Canada, and

Section 25 (4) of the Criminal Code of Canada justifies the use of force by police officers that can

result in bodily harm or even death.34 But whether the police officers apply force reasonably or

correctly without prejudice is not predictable. Some biased police officers could conduct their

495.html#:~:text=495%20(1)%20A%20peace%20officer%20may%20arrest%20without,whom%20he%20finds%20

committing%20a%20criminal%20offence;%20or 28 Ottawa Police Service, “Sir Robert Peel's Principles of Law Enforcement 1829”, Published in 2020,

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/en/about-us/Peel-s-Principles-.aspx 29Meng, Yunliang. “Racially Biased Policing and Neighborhood Characteristics: A Case Study in Toronto, Canada.”

Para 29. 30 J. Renee Navarro, “Unconscious Bias”, Office of Diversity and Outreach, University of California, San Francisco,

Accessed on December 1, 2020, from, https://diversity.ucsf.edu/resources/unconscious-bias 31Tougas, Desruisseaux. “Two Forms of Racism and Their Related Outcomes: The Bad and the Ugly.” Canadian

journal of behavioral science 36, no. 3 (July 2004), p.g. 177, https://doi.org/10.1037/h0087228 32Monnica T. Williams, “Micro aggressions: Clarification, Evidence, and Impact” Association for Psychological

Science, August 16, 2019, pg., 3 https://doi-org.uml.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/1745691619827499 33Ibid, p.g, 3. 34Government of Canada, “Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46)” Justice Laws Website, Accessed on March 23,

from https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/C-46/page-5.html#h-115622

6

duties in contravention of due process of procedural justice provisions. Such extra -judicial

deviation could lead to misconducts like discrimination and racial profiling.

1.3 Characteristics of Racial Profiling

The defining characteristics of racial profiling emerge from the fact that it is a mindset. 35

Racial Profiling is practical. In fact, it manifests when the police apprehend or accuse people based

on stereotypical assumptions about their character and treat them unfairly during the investigation

or questioning.36 The findings of the analysis of the Ontario Human Rights Commission show that

racial profiling are not limited to a particular group of people or institution.37 Racial profiling

affects individuals of all ages, and Black youth are frequently abused because they often use public

spaces where biases and stereotypes label them with antisocial behaviors .38 The Toronto Police

Service data between 2003-2012 indicates significant increase in the number of stops and arrest

ratios by 42.7% and 44.9% respectively, while the same is not the case for the white youth as both

indices decreased steadily during the same period.39

People have varied experiences of racial profiling, and in Canada, perceptions of racial

profiling can often differ based on age and/or gender.40 For example, if a police officer develops a

degree of indictable confidence based on a bulge in the pocket of a passing pedestrian (mostly a

young black man) and tries to stop and search him because past searches and convictions by a

police officer indicate that such men are much more likely to carry an illegal firearm than others,

that is racial profiling.41 Racial profiling has also been described as an ongoing social menace

35 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Paying the price: The human cost of racial profiling”, OHRC, October 21,

2003, Retrieved on March 6, 2021 from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/paying-price-human-cost-racial-profiling 36Ibid, n.p. 37Ibid, n.p. 38Yuniliang Meng, Sulaimon Giwa and Uzo Anucha, “Is there Racial Discrimination in police Stop-and- Seraches of

Black Youth? A Toronto Case Study”, Canadian Journal of Family and Youth, Pg. 117, Published March 15, 2015

and Retrieved on March 6, 2021fromDOI:https://doi.org/10.29173/cjfy24301 39Yuniang Meng, “Profiling minorities: Police stop and search practices in Toronto, Canada”, Human Geographies – Journal of Studies and Research in Human Geography, May2017 Retrieved on March 7, 2021,

fromDOI:10.5719/hgeo.2017.111.1

andhttps://search.proquest.com/openview/75df48cf452351e52990fe9583bd23b7/1?pq-

origsite=gscholar&cbl=396324 40 Ontario Human Rights Commission,“Paying the price: The human cost of racial profiling”, OHRC, October 21,

2003, Retrieved on March 6, 2021 from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/paying-price-human-cost-racial-profiling 41 Amit Pundik, “Against Racial Profiling” University of Toronto Law Journal, Published in 2017, Retrieved on

November 18, 2020,https://doi.org/10.3138/UTLJ.3883

7

because, normally, in law-enforcement, a crime is discovered and a police then look for a suspect

while “Profiling” means that a suspect is discovered and the police then look for the person to have

possibly committed it.42 Racial profiling, as it depends on the person being a member of a certain

racial group, leads the police officer to conclude that the individual is more likely to be guilty.43

1.4 The Prevalence of Racial Profiling

Racial profiling has been a prevalent public debate that constitutes controversy in Toronto.

Black youth in Toronto have been fighting hard with Toronto Police Service for over 40 years in

an effort to overcome racial profiling.44Among other manifestations of racial profiling, the Black

youths have complained of being frequently stopped, questioned, and primarily searched for

Driving While Being Black Violations (DWBBs).45 Overtime, parents in Toronto have lived in fear

with their black sons and daughters over how to educate them against unguided utterances or

altercation with police that could lead to misunderstanding, abuse or even death.46In contrast, some

studies have observed how black/racialized youth develop and manage thriving relationships with

the police. Dr. Akwasi Owusu-Tempah’s study indicates that participation of the Toronto police in

community activities, particularly sports programs, have a positive impact on how Black youth see

the police.47 Toronto Police Service has fostered relations with Black youth by organizing a

reconnection scheme to involve some police officers as Hockey and Basketball Coaches in

neighborhood schools. Through the scheme, the youth has established a flourishing partnership and

synergy with the Toronto Police officers.48 This data suggests a need to fully identify and mine

youth assets and police resources that could examine the perceptions and experiences of both Black

youth and Toronto Police as important and unique social determinant. The study found a new and

42 Hopkins, Tamar, “Policing in an Era of Human Right” [2007] AltLawJI 35; (2007) 32(4) Alternative Law Journal

224 http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/AltLawJl/2007/35.html#fn17

, and (also cited as) Martinot 2003, 168 as quoted in Carol Tator and Frances Henry, Racial Profiling in Canada

(2006). 43 Ibid, np. 44 BBC News, “Human rights inquiry into Toronto police racial profiling”, BBC News, Published November 30,

2017, Retrieved on November 30, 2020, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42187277 45Yunliang Meng, “ Racially Biased Policing and Neighborhood Characteristics: A Case Study in Toronto, Canada”

Para 1-2, published in 2014, Retrieved from, https://doi.org/10.4000/cybergeo.26165 46Hon Senator Rosemary Mordie, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, n.p. 47Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, “Black Males’ Perceptions of and Experiences with the Police in Toronto”, p.g, 142 48Ibid, p.g142.

8

effective community policing perspectives based on the idea that when officers are able to

understand the people with whom they are working, they are likely to implement the law

appropriately and legitimately keep the public safe. A similar research showed that the Toronto

Police Service had been running an after-school campaign to promote and engage youth diversity

in Toronto over the year. This indicates that the initiative strengthens the bond between the police

and the youth.49

1.5 Rationale for Selecting the City of Toronto as A Case Study

The rationale for selecting the city of Toronto as a case study is predicated upon the factor

of its multicultural background and its predominance of the Black communities in Canada. For

this, there has been topical debates and alleged incidents of racial profiling against the Toronto

Police service. For example, in a hearing conducted by the Human Right Tribunal of Ontario, a

mall security called the police after falsely accusing a black woman of stealing a bra. The police

officer, in his investigation, immediately followed an “assumption of guilt” method by forming an

indictable level of belief that the woman actually stole the bra.”50 The police officer also searched

the black woman and found nothing incriminating. Even after examining video footage that showed

no proof of theft, the police officer still held the belief that the woman was guilty.51. Likewise,

courts and tribunals have heard evidence of racial profiling and racial discrimination of Black

person by the Toronto Police in stops, questioning and searches.52Reconnecting Black youth and

Toronto Police Service to mitigate racial profiling will encourage respect for human rights in police

operations, considering the intersection of racial profiling with religion, culture and ancestry.

49Toronto Police Service, “Youth In Policing Initiative (YIPI)” Toronto Police Service, Accessed on March 8, 2021

from, http://www.torontopolice.on.ca/yipi/ 50Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling in law enforcement”, OHRC,

subheading- “Failing to assess the totality of circumstances”, n.p. 51 Ibid, n.p. 52Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A Collective Impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and

racial discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service” OHRC,(subheading: unnecessary stops,

questioning and searches) Accessed from, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/public-interest-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-discrimination-toronto-police-service/collective-impact-interim-report-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-racial-

discrimination-black

9

2.0 State of Black Youths in Toronto

Racial profiling is injurious to any demographic that has growth potential, particularly the

people of African descent whose past has been connected to transatlantic slavery and colonization.

A causal look down the memory lane shows that Black people have been living in Canada since

the time of slavery and colonization. According to Statistics Canada’s data, there have been more

than one million Black people in Canada since 2016, and 71% of this population aged 25 to 59

were mostly Caribbean and sub-Saharan African immigrants.53 Across the provinces of Canada,

Black people live together in colonies, but Toronto has become home to more than 200,000 people

of African origin, as Canada’s most multicultural city. 54According to the 2016 Census, Black

populations accounted for just 8.8% of the total population of Toronto, although other visible

minority groups, such as South Asians and Chinese, accounted for 12.6% and 11.1% of the

population, respectively.55 Despite this diversity, recent research on the lived experiences of Black

Canadians has shown that anti-Black racism is still adversely prevalent in Toronto against Black

communities, both in the social and economic spheres, including the justice system and contacts

with the police service.56

The Black youth in Toronto are disconnected from the police due to lack of trust.57 For

many years, some of the youth have the confidence that the police are their friends while others

run away from the police because of racial profiling and deep mistrust of the Toronto Police

officers.58’59 Police officers in Toronto use social network-based risk analysis to develop crime

prevention techniques known as predictive forms of policing. The use of predictive forms of

policing that enable risk assessment, have broadened “the scope and power of the police to identify

53Rene Houle, “Ethnicity, Language and Immigration Thematic Series: Changes in the socioeconomic situation of

Canada’s Black population, 2001 to 2016” Statistics Canada, Release date, August 13, 2020, Retrieved on

November 20, 2020,https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-657-x/89-657-x2020001-eng.htm 54Natasha Hinds Fitzsimmins, “Backgrounder: Confronting Anti-Black Racism”, City of Toronto, Published on

December 10, 2018, Retrieved on December

Backgrounder: Confronting Anti-Black Racism – City of Toronto 55Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A collective Impact: Interim Report” (Toronto’s Black Population), n.p. 56Ibid, np. 57 James, Carl. Chapman Nyaho, S., & Kwan-Lafond, D., “Assessing the effectiveness of the Toronto Police

Services Board’s youth initiatives”, YOUTHREX, Retrieved from http://ycec.edu.yorku.ca/files/2012/11/170481-

YCEC-Toronto-Police-Services-Board-Report.pdfPg, 115. 58James, Carl. Chapman Nyaho, S., & Kwan-Lafond, D, “Toronto Police Service Board Youth initiative”, (Policing

Reform). 59Meng, Yunliang. “Racially Biased Policing and Neighborhood Characteristics, n.p.

10

people as suspects”, in ways that have a direct adverse effect on racialized communities.60

Predictive policing by the Toronto Police Service can be traced to several factors. For instance,

police often label individuals as gang members based on non-legal criteria, such as tattoos,

accessories, information provided by third-parties, self-admission, etc. The police also designate

others as gang associates due to their alleged or actual associations with “known gang members”

or previous arrests.61 This creates a “full social network of associates, all of whom are deemed

worthy targets for intensive surveillance.62 Predictive policing and the impartial way of advancing

crime prevention are a great deal of concern among Black communities in Toronto. The concerns

include the issues of data collection based on bias, in particular the deployment of police officers

in specific areas such as the Black neighborhood.63 Practicing predictive policing techniques, can

favor the occurrence of racial profiling at any stage of the police decision-making process. It may

arise from the overt or subconscious bias of a police officer based on conscious or unconscious

prejudices, personal discrimination, or hostility to Black persons.64 The racial bias of some of the

Toronto police officers and the discriminatory targeting of Black youth has disconnected them

from the law enforcement officers.65

Also, in Toronto, police knowledge of a place comes from not only the physical

environment of the place, but also the people who occupy the place. The police strongly tie race

and socio-economic conditions to their knowledge of places.66 Such knowledge is a resource for

constructing the meaning of places. However, the police’s knowledge of Place is shared and

impacted by the community, media, and their occupational and professional demands and

experiences. As a result, their knowledge of place often contains bias and prejudice.67Concern

about unconscious bias must be recognized as a systemic issue not just for police officers, but also

for prosecutors, judges and other authorities in the criminal justice system, considering that the

60 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling”, (Risk assessments based on social

networks), n.p. 61 Ibid, n.p 62 Ibid, n.p. 63Ibid, (Concerns about Predictive Policing), n.p. 64 Ibid, np. (Executive Summary). 65 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “OHRC written deputation to the Toronto Police Services Board re: Police

Reform in Toronto: Systemic Racism, Alternative Community Safety http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/ohrc-written-

deputation-toronto-police-services-board-re-police-reform-toronto-systemic-racism 66Yunliang Meng, “Racially Biased Policing and Neighborhood Characteristics” 67 Ibid, n.p

11

general public is plagued by these behaviors unknowingly.68 The disconnect between Black youth

and Toronto Police officers has fueled an existing fear among the youth to flee when they see the

police. The likelihood that Black youth will continue to run away from the police permanently are

very small, given that there is a strong historical burden of Profiling and Carding,69 which is based

on lack of credibility and discrimination by the police.70

In 2011, investigations and interviews with the Toronto Police Services Board’s Youth

Program indicate that 81% of youth participants said that young people of their generation did not

trust the police in their neighborhoods,71 and their views of the police have revealed that Black

people in Toronto are being handled differently than white people in a manner that they are more

likely to be unlawfully arrested and detained by the police.72 The Ontario Human Rights

Commission indicates that “between 2013 to 2017, a Black person was nearly 20 times more likely

than a white person to be a victim of fatal shooting by the Toronto Police Service”.73 While Black

people make up only 8.8% of the population of Toronto, they also represent almost 30% of the use

of force incidents by the police, resulting in serious injury or death. In comparison with other

communities, Black people in Toronto constitute 60% of lethal encounters with the Toronto Police

and 70% of fatal police shootings.74

Study also indicates that black high school students in Toronto are more likely than white

high school students to be stopped and searched several times by the police, suggesting that black

68 Honorable Michael H. Tulloch, “Report of Independent Street Checks Review”, Government of Ontario, Ministry

of the Solicitor General, ( subheading, “Unconscious and Implicit Bias” ) Para 24, Pg. XIV, Accessed from,

https://www.mcscs.jus.gov.on.ca/english/Policing/StreetChecks/ReportIndependentStreetChecksReview2018.html#c

hapt_2 69Honorable Michael H. Tulloch, “Report of Independent Street Checks Review” (subheading, History of Street

Checks and Carding),pg. 36 70 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Collective Impact: Interim Report…” (Subheading, “Impact”), n.p. 71 James, Carl. Chapman Nyaho, S., & Kwan-Lafond, D. “Toronto Police Service Board’s Youth

Initiatives….2011”, Pg. 112 . 72 Guy Ben-Porat, “Policing multicultural states: lessons from the Canadian model”, Policing & Society, November

19, 2008, Doi:10.1080/10439460802094686. 73Ontario Human Rights Commission, “OHRC written deputation on the Toronto Police Service Board re: Police

Reform in Toronto: Systemic Racism, Alternative Community Safety and Crisis Response Models and Building

New Confidence in Public Safety, OHRC, Published on August 20, 2020, Retrieved on November 20, 2020.. 74Ontario Human Rights Commission, “OHRC interim report on Toronto Police Service inquiry shows disturbing

results”, OHRC, Published on December 10, 2018, Retrieved on November 20, 2020,http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/ohrc-interim-report-toronto-police-service-inquiry-shows-disturbing-

results

12

high school students are likely to become victims of “racial profiling”.75 The over-representation

of Blacks youth in the criminal justice system of Ontario76 and crime statistics could mean two

things: (1) Either that Black youth are still subject to increased scrutiny by the police, or (2) it could

also mean that they are more active in illegal activity than the other constituent parts of the city of

Toronto. However, the consequence of the over-representation of Black youth, in the justice

system, is that police incident statistics and media reports are readily embraced by the public, as

credible findings that reflect the opinions of the state in respect of violence, aggression and crime.

The Black youth are also reported to feel like unequal or less worthy members of the society as a

result of their experience of profiling, which has left traces of painful experiences in their lives.77

2.1 Impact of Racial Profiling

The threats and lived experiences of racial profiling impacts the Black communities in

Toronto in such a way that no matter how hard they try or how resourceful they are, they could

never escape the skin they were born in and the status they have been given in the society.78 With

these fears forever surrounding the Black youth, it seems clear that to be born into a family of poor

Black parents is to fight a futile battle against many police persecutions, especially as there is a

strong notion that the country is set up against them.79 Black youth are caught up in systemic racial

profiling, dealing with lack of equal opportunities for employment, education and social mobility. 80

These hard experiences have distinguished them from many non-Black Canadians who do not

really understand the impacts of excessive scrutiny of Black people by the Toronto Police

officers.81 Those who experience racial profiling pay the price emotionally, psychologically,

mentally and in some cases even financially and physically. Racial profiling is more than an

75 Steven Hayle, Scott Wortley and Julian Taner, “Race, Street Life, and Policing: Implications for Racial Profiling.”

Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Accessed November 27, 2020. Doi:

10.3138/cjccj.2014.E32.

76Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A collective Impact: Interim report...” 77Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Paying: The effects of racial profiling”, Retrieved on November 20, 2020,

from, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/paying-price-human-cost-racial-profiling/effects-racial-profiling 78 Hon Senator Rosemary Mordie, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, n.p. 79 Ibid, n.p. 80 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling in law enforcement” (Executive

Summary), n.p. 81 Hon. Jim Munson, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism against Afro-Canadians,

Indigenous Canadians and Asian Canadians” n.p.

13

irritating inconvenience or an annoyance.82 It has real and direct consequences. Research has

shown that some Black people accept and internalize derogatory perceptions that undermine their

cultural identity while some strive to transform negative encounters into constructive ones by

promoting confidence of one’s identity and mobilizing for political purposes.83 The problem of

racial profiling has not given most of the children and Black youth in Toronto an equal platform to

grow into confident citizens that love their country (Canada) or an opportunity to ascertain that

their country loves them back.84 For some black youth in Toronto, being “Canadian” is the only

identity they have. They face two levels of citizenship: those of Caucasian descent and those from

other countries. They would hardly be treated as full Canadian citizen, one that would be treated

with all the privileges, because of racial discrimination and profiling by the police.85 The Black

youth are likely to continue to develop a diminished sense of citizenship, and the misconducts of

racial profiling by the Toronto Police service has caused great distress to the Black communities

as it contributes to their over-representation in the criminal justice system.86

3.0 Policing and Diversity

Some underlying factors motivate the actions of certain government departments, such as

the police service. Peter Sloly, Ottawa Police Service chief and formerly Deputy Chief of the

Toronto Police Service, states that individual and systemic racism exists in Canadian police forces,

in all Canadian institutions, and in Canadian society as a whole.87 In a presentation to the Standing

Committee on Public Safety and National Security, Chief Sloly says that the ongoing negative

impact of systemic racism rooted in Canada’s colonial past is eroding the public’s trust and

confidence in policing.88 Systemic racism is a well-established concept enabling the institutional

82Ontario Human Rights Commission , “Paying the price: The human cost racial profiling: The effects of racial

profiling” Accessed from, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/paying-price-human-cost-racial-profiling/effects-racial-profiling 83Ontario Human Rights Commission, Paying the price: The human cost of racial profiling Paying price, “Impact on

our communities”, n.p. 84 Ibid, n.p. 85 Ibid, n.p.,”Alienation and a diminished sense of Citizenship” 86 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “The effects of racial profiling” (Alienation and a diminished sense of

citizenship)OHRC,,Accessed from, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/paying-price-human-cost-racial-profiling/effects-

racial-profiling 87 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Systemic Racism in policing in Canada”: Presentation by OPS Chief Peter

Sloly to the Standing Committee on Public Safety & National Security,

https://www.cacp.ca/index.html?asst_id=2208 88Ibid, n.p.

14

practices sustained in police organizational culture.89 Racism is like an unwritten constitution that

is rooted in society. It plays the role of an invisible constitution that reminds and directs collections

of oppressive practices that directly oppose the elected constitution of the state. Systemic racism

permeates the fabrics of the Canadian society,90 which makes the role of police officers, as the first

human physical contact between the state and the public, critical in assessing the race relations

between a community and the police. As a result, one should put historical and social factors into

perspective while examining the Black community’s disharmony with the police in connection

with racial profiling. The racism around police profiling of the Black communities could also be

assessed from the perspective of some harsh age-long legislation that had been implemented by the

Canadian government. The Canadian government has traditionally developed and implemented

laws, policies, and procedures that are now considered racist.91 Following the practice of slavery

under the British rule, Canada enforced discriminatory policies ranging from sanctioning

discrimination of education and residential accommodation to racializing the criminal justice

system, immigration and processes of refugee determination.92 Canada was imagined as a white

supremacist state whose laws and social values have oppressed and eventually led to racial profiling

of the people of African descent in contemporary times - a social construct related to criminal

profiling and adopted by law enforcement authorities within Canadian cities.93

The profiling and over-representation of Black youth as delinquent and habitual offenders

by the Toronto Police Service is not a common practice unique to Canada alone. It is important to

recognize that Black people are also racially marked by the police in other racialized societies

around the world. For example, Amnesty International’s report on how the Gangs Matrix, a racially

biased database used by the London Metropolitan Police, criminalizes and stigmatizes young Black

males.94 Also, in Brazil, there has been an increase in the use of excessive force by the police in

the state of Rio de Janeiro and most of the casualties are young black men from the Brazilian

89Ibid, n.p. 90 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Systemic Racism in policing in Canada”, n.p 91Charles Smith, “Conflict, Crisis, and Accountability Racial Profiling and Law Enforcement in Canada”, Canada

Center for Policy Alternatives, Published October 11, 2007, Accessed on November 12, 2020, from

https://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/conflict-crisis-and-accountability 92 Ibid, n.p. 93 Ibid, n.p. 94 Amnesty International, “Police Violence” https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/police-brutality/

15

impoverished areas.95 In fact, in the first four months of 2020, the Rio de Janeiro police killed 606

people, three quarters of whom were young, black men.96 Racism and forms of discrimination,

including racial profiling of Black people by biased police operations, are embedded into law

enforcement departments and justice systems around the world.97 Currently, it is not only reflected

in the frameworks of police and the justice system. Racial bias is still apparent in most areas of life

that involve human experiences.98 Black people have suffered from inescapable systemic racism

and racial profiling by police throughout the countries of the European Union for decades.99 The

survey conducted between 2015-2016, on 6,000 people in 12 European Union countries shows that

in Finland, Ireland and Austria, violent motivated racism towards Black people ranks highest.100

In wondering why crime is overwhelmingly associated with the Black communities in

Toronto, it has also been noted that this trend and idea is typical of some multicultural countries of

the world, which begs the critical question of whether linking the Black communities to crime

provides substantial and well-founded proof that such an assumption is a truism. If, as documented,

Black youth in Toronto and other multicultural societies had become lawbreakers and offenders, if

they had perpetrated every indictable crime as quantified in all the records and histories of the

criminal justice system, it would not be simple or persuasive for civil society, human rights

activists, and the United Nations to fight against their observable discrimination and inequality.101

In response to a call made to the United Nations by 144 families of victims of police violence, and

by more than 360 civil society organizations,102 the United Nation High Commissioner for Human

95 BBC News, “Rio violence: Police killings reach record high in 2019” , Published January 20, 2020, Accessed

from, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-51220364 96Palabay, Francisco Mateo Rocael Morales, Miguel Martin and Ruben Kondrup, “Confronting systemic racism”.

Open Global Rights, October 16, 2020, https://www.openglobalrights.org/confronting-systemic-racism-globally/. 97Amnesty International, “Police Violence” (subtitle: Police brutality and Racism)https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-

we-do/police-brutality/ 98European Agency for Fundamental Rights, “Being Black in the EU Second European Union Minorities and

Discrimination Survey”, pg. 7, https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/fra-2019-being-black-in-the-eu-

summary_en.pdf, https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2018/being-black-eu 99 European Agency for Fundamental Rights, “Being Black in the EU Second European Union Minorities and

Discrimination Survey”,pg. 5, https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2018/being-black-eu,

https://fra.europa.eu/sites/default/files/fra_uploads/fra-2019-being-black-in-the-eu-summary_en.pdf 100 BBC, “Racism against black people in EU ‘widespread and entrenched’ ”https://www.bbc.com/news/world-

europe-46369046 101 International Service for Human Rights, “ HRC45 | UN High Commissioner stresses urgent collective duty to

address systemic racism and police brutality” ISHR, published on October 1, 2020, Retrieved on November 21,2020,

https://www.ishr.ch/news/hrc45-un-high-commissioner-stresses-urgent-collective-duty-address-systemic-racism-

and-police 102 Ibid, .np.

16

Rights emphasized on the urgent need to stop all forms of racism against Black communities and

excessive use of force by law enforcement officers, immediately and everywhere.103 The

Commissioner has noted that there is still a lack of accountability and redress as police abuse

investigations appear to be launched only after video material shared on social media has caused a

surge of mass outrage that puts heavy pressure on the government.104 The problem of neglecting

responsibility and immediate change in police misconduct against the Black people is, perhaps, the

most complex one in determining where the dignity of the human person belongs. DeLaet (2015)

states that if the simple definition of human rights is the rights we have as humans (persons), then

when people disagree on the meaning of personhood; disagreement on ‘the rights one has because

one is human’ inevitably follows.105 The right one has because one is human is inalienably rivetted

in the human person universally. It extends the protective voice of human rights advocates to

encourage human development and fight against unfair criminal justice system. As a consequence,

the Ontario Human Rights Commission has questioned the Toronto Police Service and the Toronto

Police Service Board concerning significant instances of “racial profiling” of the Black

communities including the use of force and charges.106 The Commission also reported prevalent

racial profiling of Black families in Child Welfare Sector, and this data is consistent with Statistics

Canada’s record from 2011.107

People of African descent are also faced with structural racism and exclusion in other parts

of the world. Michael O’ Flaherty, Director of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights

(FRA) notes that it is a reality both shameful and infuriating that racism based on the color of a

person’s skin remains a pervasive scourge against black communities throughout the European

103Human Rights Watch, “Oral update by the High Commissioner for Human Rights on A/HRC/RES/43/1”, n.p. 104Ibid 105DeLaet Deborah, The Global Struggle For Human Rights: Universal Principle In World Politics (Stamford, CT:

Cengage Learning, 2015) 12 -13 106 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “ Letter to Toronto Police Association Board of Director re: Inquiry into

racial profiling and discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service, Accessed from

http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/letter-toronto-police-association-board-directors-re-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-

discrimination 107 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Under suspicion: Issues raised by Indigenous peoples”, OHRC ( Subheading, Child Welfare),Posted 2017, Accessed fromhttp://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/under-suspicion-issues-raised-

indigenous-peoples

17

Union.108 Racial profiling is injurious, but disconnection and withdrawal will continue to alienate

the Black youth, leaving a frightening vacuum of disharmony.109

3.1 Racism and Policing of Multicultural City of Toronto

When functions of racism are perceived in the police service, it is visible and mostly felt

by the racialized people because the police is the first point of physical enforcement contact

between the state and its people in a multicultural city as Toronto. In fact, “the issue of policing is

salient because of the nature of police work and the type of engagement it entails”.110 The ultimate

basis of the police interaction with the public is to serve and protect, based on confidence and trust

it has earned from the society. This trust is essential for achieving a cooperation between the police

service and the society. Naturally, the members of the public are law abiding because they believe

in social justice, but surprisingly, little serious attention has been given to the connection between

police officers and the police institution as the government body that is responsible for supporting,

directing and monitoring police work.111

The police are funded and empowered by the state. In a democratic society, the power of

the state comes from the mandate of its people because the citizens of every nation deserve the

government they voted into power. In the case of a multicultural society as Toronto, “a police

officer is the symbolic representation of the authority. Their view of the state and their acceptance

of its authority are partially shaped by their interactions with the police”.112 This interaction comes

along with both positive and negative encounters, and after some time, Black communities, among

other racialized communities, may be alienated from the police they perceive as enforcing, unjust

108Michael O’Flaherty, “Second European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey

Being Black in the EU” FRA European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, Published November 2018, Accessed

on December 3, 2020 from,

https://fra.europa.eu/en/publication/2018/being-black-eu 109Toronto Police Service Board’s Youth Initiatives….2011, Pg 112 110 Guy Ben-Porat, “Policing multicultural states: lessons from the Canadian Model, Policing and Society, December

2008, DOI:10.1080/10439460802094686 111Alice Hills “Does police work need a police institution? The evidence

from Mogadishu, Policing and Society, Published online in 2016, p.g, 395, DOI: 10.1080/10439463.2014.942854 ,

https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2014.942854 112 Richard Downie, “Building Police Institutions in Fragile States: Case Studies from Africa”, Center For Strategic and International Studies, ISBN# 978-1-4422-2437-7 (pub), January 18, 2013, Retrieved on October 20,

2020,https://www.csis.org/analysis/building-police-institutions-fragile-states

18

and discriminating policies.113 These perceptions can undermine police work and prevent minority

groups from receiving the police services they need, especially where police and minorities have a

history of violence that favor mutual mistrust.114

3.2 Street Checking

The discourse that the police institutions are underpinned by the centrality of the state, as state

agents, makes the police force as one of the most important institutions in the state.115 And what

makes this fact even more critical is that it is motivated by taxpayers that police reform will promote

democratization and human development.116 Street check is a practice the police service uses to

store different kinds of information in their database. And it is defined as bias-free policing policies,

which include an electronic record of information obtained through a contact with a person who

was not detained or arrested during his/her interaction with the police.117Although a popular notion

holds that street checks also mean Carding, another form of street check that involves police

officers stopping and questioning someone for identifying information in a particular type of

situation,118Justice Michael H. Tulloch, a judge in Ontario, has explained that the expression street

check is used erroneously for the word Carding. While distinguishing the practice of Carding

from street checks, Tulloch provides that street checks is information collected by a police officer

concerning an individual outside the police station, which is not part of the investigation whereas

Carding represents a small part of what falls under the overarching blanket of street checks.119 He

further defines Carding as a situation in which a police officer randomly accosts an individual in

the street with no objective suspicion or behavior suggesting that the individual has any

113 Guy Ben-Porat, ‘Policing multicultural states: lessons from the Canadian model’, Policing & Society, December

4, 2018, Retrieved from DOI:10.1080/10439460802094686 114 Ibid, p.g.411 115 Alice Hills, “Does the police work need a police institution” pg., 395 116Ibid, pg. 395 117 Royal Canadian Mounted Police, “Nova Scotia RCMP shares Street Check and Bias-Free Policing policies”,

RCMP, April1, 2019, Retrieved on November 23, 2020,

https://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/en/news/2019/nova-scotia-rcmp-shares-street-check-and-bias-free-policing-policies 118Honorable Michael H. Tulloch, “Report of Independent Street Checks Review”, “ Part 2 Background,

Introduction, Chapter 1, Page 28” 119 Ibid. (Subheading, “What is Street Check”) at Para. 9.

19

incriminating or indictable information and then entering and retaining all this information into a

police intelligence database.120

Police Street checks have repeatedly caused public controversy of racial profiling in

Toronto, in that, the police sometimes use race and prejudice rather than a “reasonable ground”, to

pick out a person for further investigation or arrest.121 Based on these ongoing controversy and

issues around the practice of Carding by police, the public outcry was heeded by the policy makers,

such that in 2017, the government appointed the Honorable Justice Michael Tulloch to lead an

independent review of the regulation to avoid the prevalence of these acts on the basis of limited

evidence.122 Also, central to this controversy is the recent Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in

the case of R. v. Le, 2019 SCC 34 concerning five racialized young men (four young Black men

and one Asian young man) carded by two police officers who entered a backyard in Toronto

without any warrant or consent and immediately stopped and questioned these men who appeared

to be doing nothing wrong, requesting documentary proof of their identities.123

The Supreme Court ruled that the evidence be excluded, the convictions be set aside, and

acquittals entered. The court said the circumstances of the police entry into the backyard that

affected a detention that was both immediate and arbitrary. It concludes that a detention arose as

soon as the police officers entered the backyard in Toronto and started questioning the accused

youth.124 The Court states that the actions and language used may show that the police are

immediately taking control of a situation. The nature of any police intrusion into a home or

backyard is reasonably experienced as more forceful, coercive and threatening.125 The Section 9 of

the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom protects the right of every Canadian citizen to be free

from arbitrary detention by the police and encourages individual liberty against unjustified state

interference that could lead to imprisonment.126 When evidence is obtained in a manner that

infringes on human rights or freedom, Section 24(2) of the Charter provides that such evidence

120 Ibid, Definition, at Para. 4 121Ibid. at Para. 1. 122 Yanni Dagonas. “ Ontario Appoints Independent Street Check Reviewer'', Government of Ontario- Newsroom,

June 7, 2017,https://news.ontario.ca/en/release/45094/ontario-appoints-independent-street-checks-reviewer 123R. v. Le, 2019 SCC 34 (CanLII), <http://canlii.ca/t/j0nvf>, retrieved on 2020-12-06 124Ibid, n.p. 125Ibid, n.p. 126 Department of Justice, “Section 9 – Arbitrary detention” Government of Canada, Accessed from,

https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-ccdl/check/art9.html

20

must be excluded if it is established that its admission would bring the administration of justice

into disrepute.127 The exclusion of such evidence may provoke immediate criticism, but the aim of

the decision is to safeguard the overall repute of the justice system.128

The police approach in Toronto encourages the traditional value system, which suppresses

racialized people. It appears to demonstrate topical concerns such as racism and stereotyping that

play a role in officers’ decisions about who to stop and why, which especially impact Black

communities in Toronto, and which have led to the effectiveness of some discriminatory police

actions such as carding of individuals.129 Carding can often be the first point of contact that can

lead to further mistreatment, violence, and racism within other segments of the justice system as

well as negative mental and physiological health outcomes.130

3.3 The Benefits of Street Checks

The police forces across Canada are provincially unique and specific, and the conduct of

street checks has in some cases led to positive outcomes. In the province of British Columbia, for

example, of all the street checks that the Vancouver Police Department carried out between 2008

and 2017, it is reported that 23% of such exercise led to uncovering homeless people or people

who had no fixed address,131 and a 10 year period of 3,988 street inspections of which 53% of the

findings had been the subject of a report of missing persons.132 The Toronto police service has also

indicated that the well-being of street checks and positive outcomes for missing person’s cases also

exists in Toronto, because street checks have assisted the police in locating the body of Cecilia

Zhang in 2009.133 The case was solved after the police recorded names of three men, including that

127 Government of Canada, Department of Justice, ‘Section 24(2) - Exclusion of evidence, The Canadian Charter of

Rights and Freedom, Retrieved on November 20, 2020 from, https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/csj-sjc/rfc-dlc/ccrf-

ccdl/check/art242.html 128Ibid, np 129 Amnesty International Canada, “Carding and anti-Black racism in Canada”, Amnesty International, Published on

August 23, 2019, Accessed from, https://www.amnesty.ca/blog/carding-and-anti-black-racism-canada 130 Ibid, .n.p. 131Drazen Manojlovic, “Report to the Vancouver Police Board”, Vancouver Police Department, pg. 11, Accessed

from, https://vancouver.ca/police/policeboard/agenda/2018/0926/SP-3-2.pdf 132 Ibid 133Honorable Michael H. Tulloch, “Report of Independent Street Checks Review”, Government of Ontario, Ministry

of the Solicitor General, Accessed from,

21

of Min Chen, her killer. Chen had been fishing in the area where Zhang’s body was found. The

police officer who recorded Min Chen’s names was conducting a street check that linked him to

the scene of the crime, which ultimately led to a confession, even though the case does not support

the proposition that the police should be authorized to randomly request and record identifying

information. This overview of Canadian experience in the world of police services looks at the

Toronto Police Service with a fresh pair of lenses.

4.0 Human Rights, Government and Toronto Police Department.

Human Rights Inquiry

The Ontario Human Rights Commission launched a probe into the Toronto police

department, an inquiry that looked at policing practices between January 2010 and June 2017, to

see if the police discriminated against the black community.134 The Commission extended the

investigation to the Toronto Police Department, the Toronto Police Service Board and the Special

Investigation Unit (SIU). It is crucial to note that the SIU’s role is to investigate the Toronto Police

Service when they are involved in a shooting or accused of assault.135 Although the Toronto Police

Service Board is a civilian board that regulates the provision of police services in Toronto, it also

has the power to oversee the efficient operation of the police department, and to guide and monitor

the performance of the Chief of Police.136 The Ontario Human Rights Commission obtained

documents and information from the Toronto Police Department, the Toronto Police Service Board

and the Special Investigations Unit (SIU), during the inquiry, to complete interjurisdictional

analysis and publish its findings and recommendations.137

The Commission employed Dr. Scot Wortley, an Associate Professor at the University of

Toronto’s Centre for Criminology and an expert in racial profiling and social science methodology

https://www.mcscs.jus.gov.on.ca/english/Policing/StreetChecks/ReportIndependentStreetChecksReview2018.html#c

hapt_2 134BBC News, “Human rights inquiry into Toronto police racial profiling” n.p. 135 Ibid, n.p. 136Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A Collective Impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and

racial discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service” OHRC,(under Toronto Police Services Board)

Accessed from, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/public-interest-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-discrimination-toronto-police-

service/collective-impact-interim-report-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-racial-discrimination-black 137Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Inquiry into Racial Discrimination and Racial Profiling of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service” OHRC, Published on November 30, 2017, Accessed from

http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/terms-reference-tps on November 21, 2020.

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to analyze the SIU data on the Toronto Police Service investigations. As part of the inquiry, Dr.

Wortley analyzed data that was documented by Ontario Human Right Commission from January

1, 2013 to June 30, 2017. His analysis shows that the Toronto Police Service is much more likely

to use force against Black people, resulting in serious injury or death. The data is disturbing and

raises serious concerns over racial profiling by the use of force. Dr. Wortley further notes that with

the severity of police violence, the over-representation of black people also continued to rise. The

Ontario Human Right Commission has also reviewed SIU Director’s Reports on investigations

involving encounters between members of the Black community and the Toronto Police Service

from January 1, 2013 to June 30, 2017. The Ontario Human Right Commission noted a variety of

concerns surrounding Toronto Police Service and Black residents, including the fact that the SIU

stated in a number of instances that there was a lack of legal and reasonable grounds for the arrest,

charges and detention of innocent Black Torontonians by the police. The Toronto Police Service

itself has acknowledged that there is racial bias and profiling within its organization and

operations.138 In addition to the interjurisdictional inquiry of the Ontario Human Rights

Commission into the operations of the Toronto Police Service, multiple task force inquiries and

court rulings have discovered that the Toronto Police Service has anti-Black bias.139 The Toronto

Star discovered in 2010 that black persons were more likely to be carded during police contacts

with the public. As a result, the province of Ontario enacted a bill in 2017 restricting the extent of

carding by police.140

In May 2018, the Ontario Human Right Commission made a submission to the review,

which included three key recommendations as follows: (1) Expand the scope of the Regulation to

direct police services to establish permanent human rights identity-based data collection. (2) adopt

province-wide standards for collecting human rights-based Data, and (3) the regulation also

provides more guidance on the circumstances in which police may approach individuals in non-

arrest scenarios.141 The regulations are to better educate the police officers on the right way to

138Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A Collective Impact, Introduction, np 139Ibid, Introduction, np. 140 BBC “Human rights inquiry into Toronto police racial profiling”, n.p. 141Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Foundation of freedom: Annual Report 2018-2019

Page controls” (subheading) Ending discriminatory street checks: submission to the Independent Street Checks

Review,http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/foundation-of-freedom-annual-report-2018-2019

23

carry out their duties in protecting the law and respecting human rights. It is expected to equip the

police in averting any conduct that is arbitrarily or random in making contacts with the public.

4.1 Role of Government

The Toronto Police Service have been doing some good job of protecting and keeping

Toronto communities safe, but not addressing the issues of racial profiling of Black youth is not

only failing the communities but it also puts the Police Service at risk.142 What is even more

troubling is that the government has not been unaware of the series of findings and suggestions to

address the police brutality of black communities in Toronto over the past decade.143 Several

branches of the Ontario government and the Toronto Police Service Board (TPSB) are currently

swamped with policies and recommendations, but not all of these solutions have been revised and

properly implemented, which is also one of the reasons why the problem of profiling is still

prevalent.144A true model of remedy should be focused towards diagnosis and to put this into

perspective goes to illustrate why a physician is diagnosing a particular patient to offer an accurate

and efficient solution for a disease. Even in the physician’s disease management technique, the

physician shall track and supervise the recovery of the patient and change the care gradually until

the patient is healed of the disease. Racial profiling of Black communities in Toronto is a disease

that needs more than mere reporting and unimplemented policies. Specific, remedial actions and

supervision of the implementations of the current policies to control the misconduct of police

officers, who defy the reputation of the police service, by engaging in discrimination and racial

profiling of the Black people, are the things that the residents of Ontario and Toronto, in particular,

need to feel.

5.0 Lessons Learned that could inform Better Black Youths-Police Relations in Toronto.

Police effort should concentrate on the safety of the communities in Toronto and their

objective should hold the society together in a collaboration that promotes insight policing. Insight

Policing is a realistic technique used in difficult moments of enforcement to gain understanding. It

is a conflict-resolution based, communication set of skills designed to help officers prevent

142Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Systemic Racism in policing in Canada”: Presentation by OPS Chief Peter

Sloly to the Standing Committee on Public Safety & National Security, n.p. 143 Hon. Josée Forest-Niesing, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, (Para 4) 144 Ibid, n.p.

24

escalation, promote compliance, and gain trust - an advantage for officers during enforcement.145

Looking at the Canadian multicultural character, implementations should embrace a reform that

aims to improve credibility and legitimacy of police officers among the Black communities in

Toronto.146 Reform should include the reinforcement of current policies of the Toronto Police

Service Board to enable the collection of raced-based data on police profiling in Toronto.147

The City and the Toronto police should take steps to end racial profiling by reviewing the

demographics and recruiting more diversity into the Toronto Police Service,148 as well as engaging

alternatively in models that can achieve reparative and restorative justice for community protection,

Considering the disproportionate representation of Black communities in the justice system and

the impact of racial profiling by the Toronto police service, changes like effective accountability

are needed to restore community trust in policing and criminal justice system.149 The police have

undertaken lots of community engagement and reform creates platforms that could be used in the

future. Shifting these platforms to endorse the Black community’s calls to defund or dissolve the

police, which is a United States initiative,150 suggests not patiently exhausting the platforms that

are already in existence. Proper implementations of the reforms could better harness the confidence

between the youth and the police and can help the reconnection and reconciliation in focus.151Police

should be urged to develop their community services and a collaborative effort from all

stakeholders is necessary to re-connect Black youth with the police.

145 Insight Policing, “ Insight generates Understanding”, Insight Policing

https://www.insightconflictresolution.org/insight-policing. 146Guy Ben-Porat, “Policing Multicultural states: Lessons from the Model”, Policing and Society, published in

December 2008, p.g 411-412 Retrieved on November 20,2020, DOI:10.1080/10439460802094686. 147Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Toronto Police Service racial profiling and carding: deputation to Toronto

Police Services”, OHRC Board, OHRC, Published on April 18, 2014, Accessed on November 2020, from

http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/toronto-police-service-racial-profiling-and-carding-deputation-toronto-police-

services-board 148 Toronto Action Plan To Confront Anti-Black Racism, Municipal Levers for Change, pg,54

https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-109127.pdf 149 Ibid,.(Policing & the Justice System), pg. 33 150 Madeleine Reyno, “Opinion: We must defund the police across the board — in Ontario, Toronto, and U of T”,

The Varsity, Published September 7, 2020, Accessed on November 10, 2020 from

https://thevarsity.ca/2020/09/07/opinion-we-can-defund-the-police-in-ontario/ 151 Ontario Human Rights Commission, the Collective Impacts..(subheadings The OHRC’s work on racism in

policing), np

25

The fact that the Black community in Toronto does not trust the police means that many

incidences of anti-Black harassment and violence go unreported.152 In decolonizing powers to

promote the true character of human rights, we need to reconnect with the struggles of ordinary

people against oppressive functions of some state institutions and authorities.153 Reconnecting the

Toronto Police Service with the Black communities requires the practice of providing equal

opportunities and treatments in every aspect of policing. Inclusive local practices and unity was

known as the acceptance of trust and authority in partnerships, provided that grassroots relationship

building was collaborative in character and sincerely negotiated. The true position and intensity of

every relationship building can be seen in the identification of the necessary foundational

dimension of a new decolonizing relationship.154

5.1 Implications of Racial Profiling.

The likely implication of racial profiling by the Toronto Police Service is that it violates

human rights. Over the years, the Government of Canada has passed laws and adopted policies that

are aimed at overcoming racism and discrimination, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and

Freedoms (Charter).155 The Charter states that “every individual is equal before and under the law

and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and,

in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex,

age or mental or physical disability.156 Despite these constitutional provisions of the Charter against

racial discrimination and profiling of individuals, Toronto Police officers often make

152 Toronto Action Plan To Confront Anti-Black Racism, Municipal Levers for Change, pg,9

https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-109127.pdf 153Salil Shetty, “Decolonizing human rights” Amnesty International, Published on May 22, 2018, Accessed on

November 2, 2020, from

https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2018/05/decolonizing-human-rights-salil-shetty/ 154 Rick Wallace, Merging Fires: Grassroots Peace building between Indigenous and Non-Indigenous Peoples

Winnipeg, Canada: Fern Wood, 2013), 119 155 Government of Canada, “What we heard — Informing Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy”, (subheading,

Introduction), n.p. 156 Government of Canada, “Constitution Act 1982: Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom” Justice Laws Website

https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/const/page-15.html

26

disproportionate arrests through interviewing, searching and detaining Black citizens walking

because they “matched the description” of a suspect.157

As reported by the Ontario Human Rights Commission, Black persons are mostly stopped

and over-interrogated by Toronto Police Service officers while driving luxury vehicles in white

communities or when other Black males are in the vehicle.158These reports indicate a black youth

could be stopped, and in some cases, detained, for driving a certain car or for walking in a certain

area. Based on human rights standards for the arrest and detention of persons, “abuse of power

might occur in the enforcement of policing functions, such as arrest and detention and in those

cases human rights may be violated”.159 As a result, it is imperative that the police should have a

clear understanding of the international human rights standards to prevent human right violations

and abuses.160 Driving of luxury vehicles in white communities, alone, does not constitute a

reasonable ground or a reasonable suspicion that a person has committed or is about to commit

indictable offence as provided in the police officers powers of arrest of the Section 495 of Criminal

Code of Canada. Also, Section 9 of the Charter holds that everyone has the right not to be arbitrarily

detained or imprisoned.161

In this case, even if a community member calls the police to complain about someone of a

certain race doing something the caller finds suspicious, it is expected that the police should make

an independent determination of the matter. The onus is on the police to decide when the case gives

rise to reasonable suspicion in order to avoid the practice of racially profiling individuals. The main

implications of racial profiling of Black youth may include the following: (1)Youth may be

confused about the standards of safety or what they may expect from the law enforcement officers,

(2) They may develop ‘guilty-before-charged’ mentality which may instigate a defensive reactive

behavior when they encounter police, and (3)Human right is denied when there is no mutual

157 Ontario Human Right Commission, “Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and racial discrimination of

Black persons by the Toronto Police Service”, OHRC, November 2018, www.ohrc.on.ca 158 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Interim Report on Inquiry (subheading- “Lived experience of Black

communities in Toronto”

159 UN Peacekeeping PDT Standards, Specialized Training Material for Police 1st

edition 2009, “ Human Rights

Standards in Arrest and Detention”, Repository UN.Org, Accessed on March 6, 2021 from

http://repository.un.org/bitstream/handle/11176/387368/STM+Human+Rights+Standards+in+Arrest+and+Detention.

pdf?sequence=6 160Ibid, n.p. 161 Canadian Charter

27

understanding about its parameters in policing. For example, in 2017, a black youth was stopped

by a Toronto Police Service officer and asked to sit on the curb with his hands behind his back.

The officer told the youth he matched the description of a suspect and that he was seen running

with his sweater hood over his head. The youth was released soon after the police took his

information, but he said that after that encounter with the police officer, people looked at him

differently, as if he was a criminal.162

The implications of the exhausted tolerance about security lapses and racism against a

certain group of people are the divisive attitudes and the mutual tensions it generates between the

police and the minorities, which favors momentary eruptions of violence.163 Joining the United

States in protesting police brutality that led to the death of George Floyd is like a natural,

unanimous reaction across the Black communities in North America - a spontaneous expression of

unity in the moment. The Black communities seem to have had enough of the subjugation and

abuses by the police. The Toronto Police Service, law makers, and prime minister are responsive

by joining the protest that demands change in police misconduct.164 The prime minister knelt on

the ground in solidarity with the anti-racism protesters gathering on Parliament Hill.165 The

protesters have reacted to these responses from the governmental levels with mixed reactions. First,

there is an appreciation of police and government empathy towards their plights. Secondly, the

protesters say that this is not enough. And they said that an effective action plan to confront anti -

Black racism in Toronto must be built in the community to grip the insights and solutions of Black

Torontonians.166

162Ontario Human Right Commission, “A collective impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling”,

(subheading Lived Experiences) 163 Alex Neve and France-Isabelle Langlois “Amnesty International open letter urges federal government to address

anti-Black racism,” Amnesty International, June 15, 2020, pg.417 Retrieved on November 21, 2020,

https://www.amnesty.ca/news/amnesty-international-open-letter-urges-federal-government-address-anti-black-

racism 164 Colin Perkel and Liam Casey, “Trudeau joins anti-racism rally in Ottawa, takes a knee in solidarity with George

Floyd protests”, (The Canadian Press), National Post, June 5, 2020, n.p., https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/anti-

racism-protesters-march-in-toronto-trudeau-calls-systemic-racism-real 165 Craig Lord, “Trudeau, thousands march in Ottawa anti-racism protest”, Global News, Posted June 5, 2020,

Accessed on November 18, 2020 from, https://globalnews.ca/news/7031781/peaceful-march-solidarity-black-

community-ottawa/ 166City of Toronto, “ Toronto Action Plan To Confront Anti-Black Racism”, City of Toronto, p.g,5

https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-109127.pdf

28

Demands for police reform appear to attract more attention after police biases against Black

people have been revealed in ‘shocking’ cases, or when circumstances indicate that the police have

not been able to cope with racial tensions that are part of a multicultural reality.167 Such

considerations perhaps explain why the African Canadians in Toronto have joined minority groups

in the United States to give voice to their marginalization and experience of police brutalities on

the streets. The racial equity protests feel like emotional outburst expressing decades of police

brutalities, fear, pain and grief from legacies of slavery and colonialism.168While the call for police

reform is validated by public opinion,169 my goal is to critique how well this measure resolves

police and youth relations in Toronto community. The issues of racial profiling should be

addressed in a constructive fashion to avoid eroding the unity in the cultural fabric that holds the

model of multiculturalism of Canada. There is need to hold police departments accountable and

reconsider making the police to respond to so many of society’s ills. One of the best ways to run a

police force that reduces violence and builds community confidence,170 is to draw on the expertise

and results of a well-built platform of empirical data on the Toronto Police Service. It is less

expensive to continue the restructuring of the police on these guidelines and to enable them to

enforce the facts. These in-the-moment responses and reactions might suggest that the good will

responses could be harnessed for the better reconnection of the youth and the police. The reactions

of the black community could also be further harnessed to create platforms for peacebuilding and

reconciliation.

5.2 Over-representation of Black Youth in the Justice System.

Over the years, the Black community’s frustration in Toronto derives from the Toronto

Police Service’s histories of racial discrimination and racial profiling of the Black people. The

Black youth though nominally free, are disproportionately represented in Ontario prisons and the

167Guy Ben-Porat, “Policing Multicultural States: lessons from Canadian Model, Policing & Society, Published

December 2008, pg. 414 168Natasha Simpson, “Canada has Race-Based Police Violence too. We Don't Know How Much”. Tyee, n.p, June 2,

2020, https://thetyee.ca/Analysis//2020/06/02/Canada-Race-Based-Violence/ 169 Robyn Maynard, “Police Abolition/Black Revolt”, TOPIA: Canadian Journal of Cultural Studies, P.g, 73,

Published online on December 7, 2020, Accessed on March 7, 2021 from https://doi.org/10.3138/topia-009 170Tom Jackman “Guest post: Defunding or disbanding the police is a dangerous idea if done hastily”, The

Washington Post, Published June 18, 2020, Accessed on March 7, 2021, fromhttps://www.washingtonpost.com/crime-law/2020/06/18/guest-post-defunding-or-disbanding-police-is-

dangerous-idea-if-done-hastily/

29

criminal justice system. Ontario Human Right Commissions shows that Black People are over

represented in the use of force cases (28.8%), shootings (36%), deadly encounters (61.5%), and

fatal shootings (70%).171 History and relationship between the Black community and the Toronto

Police Service indicate that Black people frequently experience humiliation, fear, anger, frustration

and helplessness on a case by case basis as a result of perceived racial profiling.172 Courts have

also found that Toronto Police Service officers offered biased and untrustworthy testimony, and

when the Ontario Human Rights Commission spoke to about 130 individuals in Black communities

directly, it heard about their experiences with the Toronto Police Service and the resulting trauma

and negative treatment by police.173 Biased and untrustworthy testimonies by the police are

deviations from normal practices. Racial profiling by an individual may be established where a

racialized person is singled out and subjected to unprofessional or degrading treatment by the

police.174 When we investigate how a group of racialized people have been oppressed for a long

time and are lured into an outburst of anger, we will discover that such actions could cause a sense

of siege or an understanding that the police services are targeting them. One of the key facts is the

Ontario Human Rights Commission’s report on the inquiry into racial profiling and racial

discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service, which indicates that “all the victims

included in the list of incident and activities involving racial profiling from 1978 to 2017, with the

exception of Sammy Yatim, were Black persons”.175The Commission as well as citizens expressed

shock about this report. Perhaps, with this kind of record over the years, Black youth may find it

adaptive to attempt to escape from the police, which puts them in further risk for profiling, resulting

in harm and death in some circumstances. Also, research shows that the CBC database of every

person who was killed during a police operation in Canada from 2000 to the end of 2017 reflects a

171 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and racial discrimination

of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service”, OHRC, November 2018, www.ohrc.on.ca 172 Ibid, (Executive Summary), n.p. 173Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A Collective Impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and

racial discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service” OHRC,(subheading: unnecessary stops, questioning and searches), Accessed from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/public-interest-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-

discrimination-toronto-police-service/collective-impact-interim-report-inquiry-racial-profiling-and-racial-

discrimination-black. 174 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Policy on eliminating racial profiling in law enforcement” OHRC, (

Executive Summary) Accessed from,http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/policy-eliminating-racial-profiling-law-

enforcement#_Toc17977340 175 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “A Collective Impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and

racial discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service”( Appendix A: Timeline),

30

severe over-representation of Black persons.176 Knowing that the struggle for human rights can be

intimidating in the face of prevalent police brutalities, the Black communities in Toronto have

reached the peak of the struggle against racial profiling by the Toronto Police.177 As a result, it is

time the government, the United Nations, and the civil society took far reaching actions to end the

age long differential treatments that have been dehumanizing the communities. On June 15, 2020,

Amnesty International wrote an open letter across Canada, backed by 400, 000 (four hundred

thousand) human right activists, urging the Prime Minister of Canada to make visible

improvements to anti-Black racism in Canada, especially but not limited to systemic anti-Black

racism in the police departments and justice systems.178Amid the debates that the police should

remedy the tactics of excessive use of force in policing that could be applied to the misconduct of

racial profiling.179 The Supreme Court of Canada has validated the prevalence of racial profiling

of minorities by the police.180 Sir Robert Peel, in one of his principles of law enforcement in 1829,

states that the test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible evidence

of police action in dealing with it.181

176Natasha Simpson, “Canada has Race-Based Police Violence too. We Don't Know How Much”. Tyee, n.p, June 2,

2020, https://thetyee.ca/Analysis//2020/06/02/Canada-Race-Based-Violence/ 177 BBC “Human rights inquiry into Toronto police racial profiling”, BBC, Published November 30, 2017, Retrieved

on November 30, 2020, https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42187277 178Alex Neve and France-Isabelle Langlois “Amnesty International open letter urges federal government to address

anti-Black racism,” Amnesty International, June 15, 2020, Retrieved on November 21, 2020,

https://www.amnesty.ca/news/amnesty-international-open-letter-urges-federal-government-address-anti-black-

racism 179Human Rights Watch, “Oral update by the High Commissioner for Human Rights on A/HRC/RES/43/1”, n.p. 180Meryl Friedland, “Supreme Court of Canada Finally Addresses Racial Profiling by Police”, University of Calgary-

Faculty of Law, Published on June 26, 2020, Accessed from https://ablawg.ca/2020/06/26/supreme-court-of-canada-

finally-addresses-racial-profiling-by-police/ 181 Ottawa Police, “Sir Robert Peel’s Principles of Law Enforcement 1829” Ottawa Police, Accessed from

https://www.ottawapolice.ca/en/about-us/resources/Our-History/Principles_of_Law_Enforcement.pdf

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5.3 Opportunities for Improving Relations.

Negotiating collective agreement and improved legislation (race-based data collection) to

abate the problems of racial profiling between the police and the Black youth require,182 dialogue

that require hard work and policy change and commitment of civil societies to make things happen.

Most importantly it requires different collective agreement of the Black youth and the Toronto

Police Service as the stakeholders for improving the required relations. The reparative justice and

restitution that Black youth is calling for is inclusion. There are actions that can be taken in the

short term and long term towards improving relations because the extent to which racial profiling

and other abuses of human rights go unpunished is a matter of concern.183 Apparently, the problem

of racial profiling has been treated with some levity. It has been reported that hearings are opened

only after video footage, shared to social media, sparks a torrent of mass indignation and brings

heavy pressure on the government to respond.184 However, the government could still constitute

public commission of enquiry and hold hearings on the excesses of the police operations where

both conflicting parties can start the process of peacebuilding and reconciliation. The opportunities

for improving relations between the Black youth and the Toronto Police Service include the

following: (1) Peace building panel should constitute respected ethnic, grassroot leaders, religious

leaders, and influential police representatives that are mutually acceptable to both conflicting

parties, (2) The panel should analyze the demographics and recommend the recruiting of more

diversity into the police force, (3) Encouraging cross-festivals to bridge the gap of interaction

between the Black youth and police will enhance a synergy and build trust on both sides, and

(4)Implementing unconscious-bias training programs through all government institutions,

particularly the Toronto police Service.185

182Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Toronto Police Service racial profiling and carding: deputation to Toronto

Police Services” OHRC Board, OHRC, April 18, 2014, http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/toronto-police-

service-racial-profiling-and-carding-deputation-toronto-police-service-board 183 Rose Marie Modie, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism against Afro-Canadians,

Indigenous Canadians and Asian Canadians”, n.p. 184Human Rights Watch, “Oral update by the High Commissioner for Human Rights on A/HRC/RES/43/1”,

(subheading 45th session of the Human Right Council), Human Rights Watch, Published on October 1, 2020,

Accessed on November 2, 2020 from

https://www.ohchr.org/EN/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=26326 185 Senator Jim Munson, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, Ibid,( Senator Jim Munson’s

speech as reported).

32

6.0 Policy Recommendations.

Public policy is an essential vehicle for dismantling systemic injustice,186 and the Ontario

government has already drafted several policies to help defend the lives of the Black

communities against racial profiling by the police in Toronto. The policies include the following:

(1)November 2018, Collective Impact: Interim report on the inquiry into racial profiling and

racial discrimination of Black persons by the Toronto Police Service, (2) the April 2020 Black to

the Future’s Community of Practice, (3) the 2017 Making Real Change Happen for African

Canadians, and (4) the October 2014 The Dirty War: The making of the myth of Black

dangerousness and, etc.187 The long list of government policies and proposals to stop racial

profiling and inequality among Black communities in Toronto have been frustrating because the

suggested remedies in these policies have not been effectively implemented.188

The Toronto Police Service Board has proffered a Draft Policy, in response to the current

issues of racial profiling, but much will depend on its implementation to comply with the Human

Rights Code and the provisions of the Charter.189Implementation bodes well for the future of the

Black youths in Toronto. Likewise, perceptions of decisive actions can begin to convince the Black

youths that changes are being made. They want to see that the government can start enforcing

standing policies to reduce the pervasive racial profiling against them.190 It will be a win for Canada

when Black Torontonians feel heard and the police feel appreciated for their empathic law

enforcement, they have exemplified during several anti-Black racism protests in Canada. Reacting

to the agitations of the Black protesters, Senator Rosemary Mordie notes that racism is poisonous

and has to be tackled to save the soul of Canada towards unity.191

186Canadian Centre for Policy Alternative, “Statement from the CCPA on Systemic state violence and anti-Black

racism” CCPA, November 18, 2020, https://www.policyalternatives.ca/newsroom/updates/statement-ccpa-systemic-

state-violence-and-anti-black-racism 187 Hon. Josée Forest-Niesing, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism against Afro-Canadians,

Indigenous Canadians and Asian Canadians”,(Para. 4).Government of Canada, Modified on June 18, 2020, Accessed

on November 20, 2020 fromhttps://www.canada.ca/en/canadian-heritage/corporate/transparency/open-

government/standing-committee/chagger-whole-senate-addressing-ending-systemic-racism/emergency-debate-

reports-acts-racism-afro-indigenous-asian-canadians.html. 188 Hon Senator Rosemary Mordie, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, n.p. 189 Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Toronto Police Service profiling and Carding: deputation to Toronto Police

Service Board” April 18, 2014http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/news_centre/toronto-police-service-racial-profiling-and-

carding-deputation-toronto-police-services-board 190 Hon Senator Rosemary Mordie, “Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, n.p. 191 Hon. Rosemary Modie, Emergency debate about the rise in reports of acts of racism”, n.p.

33

7.0 Conclusion

Canada has made significant progress to stop racism, amid the fact that racial profiling is a

persistent issue in Canadian society. But the fact that racism exists at multiple levels, particularly

individual, systemic and societal, must be remembered as a starting point to effectively tackle

racism and racial inequality.192The government need to consider where the frustration of Black

communities comes from amid other thoughts. To better save the lives of Black youth in Toronto

from racial profiling, it will be good to hear their voice about the lived experiences with police

brutality. It needs collective attempts reinforced by all government institutions to prevent crimes.193

Crime prevention through social development is recognized as an effective form of policing. I

concluded that: (1) Racial profiling is borne out of the systemic racism that has ridden every fabric

of the Canadian society,194 (2) Racial profiling is more prevalent during police stops and searches

involving Afro-Canadians,195(3) Black youths are disconnected from the Toronto Police Service

and government is swamped with piles of unimplemented policies that would have aided youth

collaborations and synergy with the police, (4) The role of government and launched police

initiatives are not sufficient, which begs for more research and advocacy on racial profiling of

racialized communities in Toronto. The recommendations include ideas for inclusion, integration

and changes to policy makers and the police.

192Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Racial discrimination, Race and Racism (Facts sheet”, OHRC, accessed on

December 15, 2020, from http://www.ohrc.on.ca/en/racial-discrimination-race-and-racism-fact-sheet 193 Toronto Action Plan To Confront Anti-Black Racism, Municipal Levers for Change, pg,9

https://www.toronto.ca/legdocs/mmis/2017/ex/bgrd/backgroundfile-109127.pdf 194Ontario Human Rights Commission, “Systemic Racism in policing in Canada”: Presentation by OPS Chief Peter

Sloly to the Standing Committee on Public Safety & National Security, n.p. 195Yuniliang Meng, Sulaimon Giwa and Uzo Anucha, “Is there Racial Discrimination in police Stop-and- Seraches

of Black Youth? A Toronto Case Study”, P.g, 120.