Fighting racism: We’ve come too far to quit now
Last week, I asked whether the death of George Floyd and the massive global anti-racism demonstrations that followed would lead to significant systemic change. A year or two from now, will we be marking George Floyd’s death as the moment that changed race relations, or still be stuck with old habits, lamenting a lost opportunity?
On the surface, there is hope. People drive change and the way the world community has embraced the anti-racism message augurs well for the future. Racism and police violence are no longer taboo subjects. Significant change has occurred with dizzying speed both in Canada and the U.S. Among other things, the sight of the Toronto Raptors rolling into their Disney campus with Black Lives Matter emblazoned on their buses is a testament to how things are changing. More encouraging still is how engaged the media have been on the issues, offering platforms for debate, shining light on wrongdoing and demanding accountability.
A CBC documentary, Above the Law, was an eye-opener. Both CBC and CTV’s deadly force databases showing that Blacks and Indigenous Canadians are more likely to be killed by police than white people are have helped crystallize the issue, confirming what Black and Indigenous citizens have been saying for years. The CBC database shows, for instance, that while Indigenous people make up a little over four per cent of the population, they make up 16 per cent of shooting deaths. And with three per cent of the population, Blacks make up more than eight per cent of the deaths.
Of course, Canada is not the United States. We don’t have such trenchant racism and careless disregard for Black lives by police. But the evidence suggests we can’t be complacent
Significant change has occurred with dizzying speed.
about racism. We have our demons. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has acknowledged systemic racism as a “lived reality” of Black and Indigenous Canadians, and there’s work to do to address this harsh reality. But what now?
There no doubt is a new awakening, but it will all count for little if there’s no change where it matters the most: in the ranks of police services across the country. What is lacking, what has always been lacking, is the will to act by government.
Take the U.S. Amid the sound and fury surrounding Floyd’s death, American politicians of all stripes vowed to take action to prevent such deaths in the future. Two months on, the legislation has failed in Congress amid partisan recrimination. A handful of states have banned police chokeholds and some cities have prohibited use of tear gas during protests, but that’s it.
In Canada, not much has happened either. In the midst of the Floyd protests, RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki said there was no systemic racism in the force, backing down only after Trudeau spoke to the contrary. The prime minister has spoken eloquently on the issue and thrown his support behind body cams for police, but the truth is, the federal government just hasn’t been serious about police reform. There’s no indication that’s about to change any time soon.
Provinces and municipalities that are largely responsible for police services haven’t done much either. The call to “defund the police” hasn’t really caught on, and cities such as Ottawa and Toronto are still struggling with how best to reform the police.
The problem is that for all their failings, the police remain a favoured and powerful institution, and governments are reluctant to rein them in. But the violent confrontations that have become all too familiar can’t be allowed to go on forever. There has to be a better way to police society, and simple things such as better recruitment, new training models and oversight could go a long way in improving policing.
Floyd’s death has put anti-racism on the front burner. Every facet of society is engaged and appears ready to help bring lasting change. This is the time, but will it happen? Everything that’s happened so far suggests it will. Relying on governments to take us over the line is tricky. But we have come too far to go back.