Convoy calls for end to ‘driving while Black’ cases
Police bias is a reality ‘whatever you’re driving,’ says one participant
Djennie Dorvilier had just graduated from college when she bought her first car: a brand new Mazda Protege from her local dealership.
Then 21, Dorvilier was the first in her family to finish her education. She had saved up the money for years, squeezing in as many shifts as possible at Mcdonald’s during her studies. Proud of her accomplishment, she wanted to reward herself.
Within two months of buying the car, police pulled her over 11 times.
“They could not fathom the fact that I was a young Black woman driving that type of car,” Dorvilier said. “They needed to verify who I was and would ask me how I could afford it.
“I never bought a brand new car after that.”
Dorvilier, now 41, was one of hundreds who participated in a convoy across Montreal on Sunday to denounce racial profiling by police and call for an end to “driving while Black” cases.
The convoy left from two places in the east and west end before ending about two hours later near the Namur métro station. Canadian and Quebec flags hung from car windows and signs attached to windshields read “Driving while Black, Proud and Free.”
Advocates have long decried “driving while Black” cases around Montreal, arguing police are more likely to stop Black drivers for no discernible reason and resort to force when they ask why they’re being pulled over.
A report released last year found Montreal police officers are nearly five times more likely to stop a person of colour than someone who is white. In June, the results of a public consultation on systemic racism in Montreal called on police to address a culture of racial bias within the force.
The Montreal police department has said it will soon present its plan to revise its street checks and other measures to address its relationship with minorities.
But Fo Niemi, co-founder of the Center for Research-action on Race Relations, said the issue is not unique to Montreal. On Sunday, people came from all over the greater Montreal area to denounce the problem, including Longueuil, Terrebonne and Repentigny.
“It’s widespread and systemic,” Niemi said, “and something that has been going on for so long that people feel the need to reclaim their streets.”
Alberto Syllion, a firefighter in Montreal, said he joined the protest because he’s tired of not being able to trust the police when driving in the city.
“Most people think it happens because you’re driving a luxury car, but the reality is it happens whatever you’re driving,” Syllion said. “I drive a 2006 (Toyota) Matrix. The paint job isn’t even good. And I still get stopped for verification or whatever other excuses they find.”
The toll of being stopped over and over again can grind a person down, Syllion said, and has built up frustration among many in the community.
“I asked a colleague how many times it’s happened to him and
I don’t want it to last into other generations.
he said it never has,” Syllion explained. “He asked me, and I couldn’t even answer because it’s happened so many times.”
Joel Mophu, a chartered accountant with three young children, knew the convoy was happening but wasn’t sure if he wanted to participate.
Then he went to do errands Sunday morning and noticed a police car slow down next to him, change lanes and get behind his car to note his licence plate.
“It happens all the time,” said Mophu, 40.
“I will not let my children carry this fight,” he added. “That’s why I’m here. I should have been at home doing something else, but I want this to stop with me. I don’t want this to last into other generations.”