Increased police presence not welcome by all

RE: INCREASED POLICE PRESENCE NEEDED IN DOWNTOWN ST. CATHARINES, OCT. 26

Increasing foot patrols downtown has been raised by St. Catharines city council and now Mayor Walter Sendzik has made a presentation to the police services board. Despite conceding that downtown is safe, Mayor Sendzik argued that some people perceive that it’s not and that we need downtown foot patrols. The reality is that the myriad of problems currently plaguing downtown are not necessarily something police can counteract because they’re based in poverty, addiction, mental health and homelessness.

Citizens feeling safe is at the very heart of this issue. Many of us in marginalized communities wouldn’t feel safe with an increased police presence because of a long history of police violence and repression. The NRP has failed to ensure that racialized people are employed in numbers proportional to our percentage of the population. It’s impossible for racialized people to feel comfortable in our city when surrounded by a force in which we are not equally represented.

An increased police presence serves class and white fragility. It won’t address the root causes of the issues downtown. CCTV cameras are abundant downtown and an unobtrusive way of tracking criminal activity that doesn’t expose people to unwarranted interactions with police. All citizens of St. Catharines should feel safe in our city and the way to achieve this is for strategies to address actual threats and not just perceptions based in privilege. Strategies must take into account the safety and historical oppression of marginalized people.

Renee Martin

St. Catharines