'Don't stop me because I am black'

Human rights activists who have been sounding the alarm about racial profiling among some Montreal police officers said they are happy that the top brass has acknowledged the problem, but said a lot more work needs to be done on the ground before racial profiling is a thing of the past.

Montreal police chief Marc Parent released a three-year plan on Tuesday outlining measures the department will take to combat the problem.

The initiatives include racial sensitivity training, improved relations with ethnic minorities and requiring managers at all levels to intervene when issues of racial profiling surface.

Parent said officers who engage in racial profiling will be disciplined with punishments ranging from reprimands to dismissal, depending on the severity of the case.

"There are things that were tolerated 20 years that we don't tolerate anymore," he said.

Parent said the force wants to teach officers the "best way of doing things by looking at other organizations that are doing it well."

"It is about knowledge," he said when asked how they were going to change the behaviour of officers who engage in racial profil-ing. "There is a big wave of coaching, training and communicating (within the department)."

The force has also pledged to improve the understanding of the police complaints procedure among members of the public.

The new policy comes several months after the Quebec Human Rights Commission released a report about racial profiling among police and other agencies last spring.

The report urged the government to adopt anti-discrimination training and put more effort into hiring visible minorities.

The commission's president, Gaétan Cousineau, said Tuesday the police department's new policy is "good news."

"There is the recognition that there is a problem that needs a specific intervention," he said.

"Is it the best plan? Will it be effective? Will it change things on the ground? We will have to see," he said.

Cousineau said it shouldn't take too long before we see whether the new approach is working. "We will see if the number of complaints goes down," he said.

Jeffrey Doret, a black Concordia University student who says he is often stopped by police when he is driving his father's Mercedes, said he welcomed Parent's new approach.

He has a message for patrol officers who stop black men like him for no reason: "Stop me because I ran a red light or missed a stop sign; don't stop me just because I am black."

Several human rights activists have praised Parent for taking a stand against racial profiling, but said the change in attitude must filter down to the officers on the ground.

"It(the new approach) also needs the support of the police brotherhood (union)," said Fo Niemi, the executive director of the Centre for Research-Action on Race Relations.

Niemi said it is too soon to say whether the new plan will lead to changes on the ground.

"It sounds like a rehashing of some measures that we have had in the past," he said.

Éternal Victor, director of a community group in St. Michel, said major problems exist between the police and the black community, not just in Montreal, but in black communities around the world.

"We see it in England and in France," said Victor, of the Alliance Socioculturelle et Aide Pédagogique.

Victor said police officers need more education about the dangers of racial profiling, but added the subject needs to be addressed in schools "so we can have a fairer society."

© Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette


(2012-01-19/montrealgazette)