‘Restorative justice’ planned in EPS racist poster incident
Edmonton police officers who posted racist images in the canine unit locker-room will undergo a “restorative justice” process with members of Edmonton’s Black and Indigenous communities.
In an email Thursday, Edmonton Police Service spokesman Scott Pattison said canine unit members “voluntarily came forward and took responsibility for the posters” after they were discovered earlier this summer. The pair of images showed police dogs alongside a minstrel-show-style Zulu warrior, as well as the title character from the book The Indian in the Cupboard.
Pattison said police have since resolved the matter, with a “restorative justice process” planned for late September in which the officers will “speak with members of the Black and Indigenous community.”
“The members involved are scheduled to participate, however the entire canine unit has asked to be part of the process,” Pattison said in an email. “The EPS’S goal is that this dialogue between our members and the public about the impact of these images will bring tangible, long-term change to the unit and, more broadly, to our service. As this process unfolds, updates will be provided.”
The posters were first discovered in June during a workplace review. Postmedia revealed their existence a month later.
Jibril Ibrahim, a member of Edmonton’s Somali community who previously served on EPS’S African Community Liaison Committee, said he’s frustrated with the police service’s response to the images.
He said members of the African community requested a meeting with Chief Dale Mcfee about the posters, as well as other disciplinary issues, but that the chief hasn’t been available.
Ibrahim added he’s all for education, but feels the officers involved should face some kind of sanction.
“If you want to change behaviour, you have to hit people in the pockets,” he said.
Tiera Williams, who helped organize a rally against police brutality at the Alberta legislature following the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, said she was “shocked” by the images.
“To know that people who have those views carry guns, and they’re supposed to serve Indigenous and Black people, it’s nerve-racking,” she said, adding “I’m sure a lot of (EPS officers) are disgusted by (the images) as well.”
She also feels the officers should face some form of discipline.
Micki Ruth, chairwoman of the
Edmonton Police Commission, said she is “very satisfied” with the police service’s response.
“We want to have ... a wonderful, welcoming and supportive police service,” she said. “You do that through education, through working with people, through improving the way people interact amongst themselves and with society.
“I think the way they’re going about this (disciplinary process) is going to get at that far better than simply being purely punitive.”
She also disputed the suggestion that posting such an image would be a fireable offence in some workplaces.
“Given the situation, given the circumstances ... and given where you want to be (as an organization), what is the best way forward?” said Ruth, a former member of the Ontario Provincial Police who has a background in human resources. “Sometimes it might be termination, and sometimes it isn’t.”