Andrew Loku tragedy is not about race

The tragedy of Andrew Loku, who was fatally shot during a confrontation with police last summer and whose death has now become the focal point for a protest movement, is not about race. It never was.

On the early evening of July 4, 2015, Toronto police officers saw Mr. Loku riding a three-wheeled scooter on a busy highway in downtown Toronto. Needless to say, this was a dangerous situation for Mr. Loku and motorists. Concerned for his safety and well-being, the officers assisted Mr. Loku by loading his scooter into a police car and driving him home.

Three hours later, there was an assault-in-progress call to Mr. Loku’s Toronto residence, involving a man armed with a hammer threatening a woman with death and refusing to leave her apartment. Police officers responded where they were met by an agitated and violent Mr. Loku, wielding a hammer.

The officers attempted to de-escalate the situation and repeatedly asked Mr. Loku to drop his weapon. Mr. Loku’s violent behaviour intensified, and with the hammer raised above his head, he advanced within several feet of the officers. Unable to create distance between themselves and Mr. Loku due to the narrow hallway and stairwell behind them, the officers responded to this imminent threat of serious bodily harm or death by using force.

So what changed in the three hours between Mr. Loku’s initial contact with police and his last? Mr. Loku’s skin colour did not change, nor did the officer’s perception of Mr. Loku’s race. In the final three hours, the actions of those police officers, whose lives tragically intersected with Mr. Loku, were not suddenly driven by systemic racism. Nor were the investigators with the oversight agencies, including the Special Investigations Unit, who were charged with examining his death. What did change in those final hours was Mr. Loku’s behaviour, which escalated to a point where the hammerwielding man posed a serious threat not only to police but his fellow tenants.

The police, community and social agencies must continue to work together to address the burdened mental-health services in our city. Finding appropriate care for people in crisis, particularly at night, can be challenging. As predicted in a 2010 report by the Ontario Public Service Employee Union, major restructuring of mental-health beds including the closures of some beds throughout Southwestern Ontario, shifts mental-health care needs onto families, homeless shelters, the police, corrections and other agencies. As the demand for provincial psychiatric hospital beds increases, so too will the number of persons living with mental-health issues in the community.

We need to address the fact that a dozen coroner’s inquests recommend equipping front-line police officers with Tasers. For years, the Toronto Police Association has actively advocated for Tasers, a less than lethal force option that has proven effective in successfully de-escalating many violent confrontations.

The truth is that race had nothing to do with Mr. Loku’s death. That he was black had no bearing on the officer’s decision that night. The change in his behaviour, from a peaceful man accepting a ride home from police officers to a man wielding a hammer in a violent confrontation with police, is the issue. Those who are promoting baseless accusations of race being afactor in Mr. Loku’s death have no legitimate place in this debate. Collectively we need to ensure that the mentally ill are provided proper treatment by continuing to work to improve mental-health care accessibility and support. Political leaders must also put the numerous inquest recommendations which speak to Tasers into action, to ensure that front-line police officers have a less-than-lethal-force option in their tool belt. What we don’t need is people trying to distract from these real issues and making this tragedy about race.

We need to ensure that the mentally ill are provided proper treatment

Mike McCormack is president of the Toronto Police Association.