Racism in Canada (split from A Deeply Fractured US)

[mariomike]

if I'm not mistaken there are still annual Orangemen's parades in Toronto.

2020 would have been their 200th. The parade has been postponed till 2021, due to COVID-19.

 

[Xylric]

2020 would have been their 200th. The parade has been postponed till 2021, due to COVID-19.

At the risk of being horrible, I do have to wonder what would happen if the Orange men and Black Lives Matter had a scheduling conflict for their parades....

Humans seem to hold grudges religiously - there are still places in Scotland I should probably never visit due to my family name, in some ways.

 

[daftandbarmy]

At the risk of being horrible, I do have to wonder what would happen if the Orange men and Black Lives Matter had a scheduling conflict for their parades....

Humans seem to hold grudges religiously - there are still places in Scotland I should probably never visit due to my family name, in some ways.

One thing I like about Canada is that groups like 'our' Orange Order probably don't support active terrorist organizations as part of getting their messages out...

 

[Xylric]

One thing I like about Canada is that groups like 'our' Orange Order probably don't support active terrorist organizations as part of getting their messages out...

Absolutely! People come here to get away from that kind of insanity.

 

[brihard]

At the risk of being horrible, I do have to wonder what would happen if the Orange men and Black Lives Matter had a scheduling conflict for their parades....

Humans seem to hold grudges religiously - there are still places in Scotland I should probably never visit due to my family name, in some ways.

Last I checked I thought a scheduling conflict between BLM and an orange guy results in people getting OC sprayed...  :dunno:

 

[OldSolduer]

Absolutely! People come here to get away from that kind of insanity.

Not to those that want Ontario to recognize Sharia law.

 

[Remius]

One thing I like about Canada is that groups like 'our' Orange Order probably don't support active terrorist organizations as part of getting their messages out...

The history of that organisation and their attempts to encourage assimilation and the cultural destruction of Franco Ontariens doesn’t make me a fan of that group’s past.  The remnants of which affected me into my first few years of high schools.  It certainly had an impact on my father’s generation.

But yes, glad to see it never translated into more than the occasional riot or bar brawl.

 

[BeyondTheNow]

RCMP officer shares personal experiences of racism and discrimination

B.C.
2020-06-15 08:29 PDT

Recently, police across Canada, including some of our RCMP officers were asked by The Toronto Star to share their personal experiences and perspectives on the issue of racism and discrimination. You can find a link to the story here: https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2020/06/07/heartbroken-and-conflicted-canadas-black-police-officers-open-up-about-george-floyds-death-and-anti-cop-protests.html

BC RCMP Sergeant Veronica Fox was one of those officers who responded to the request. Her full submission previously sent to the Toronto Star is below.
Authentic storytelling and open dialogue are powerful tools to drive change. This issue affects us all as Canadians.

Right now, people in North America are feeling uncomfortable, angry and afraid. The death of George Floyd while in police custody has ignited civil unrest and protest across the United States and Canada. Some police are reacting in shock, feeling profiled and unfairly scrutinized because of a number of terrible incidents. Many in the public are wrestling for the first time with complex and polarizing issues such as systemic racism, free speech, public protest, and privilege.

I have personally been deeply aggrieved to see what has been occurring south of the border. It’s heart-breaking and appalling to witness the violence and unrest. As a police officer, I fear for the safety of my colleagues and identify with the countless members who are doing good work in a dangerous and difficult job every day on behalf of their communities.

I also identify with the public who are angry and yearning for change. As sad as I am about recent events, I can not say I am shocked. That sense of discomfort, worry, and fear that people are feeling right now: It’s an old and familiar feeling for me. As a person of colour, and a minority in my community, I have felt this way my entire life.

I was born into a mixed-race family in the 80s and spent my entire youth in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia. Growing up as a Black kid in BC was not easy. I experienced isolation and racism on a daily basis. Elementary school was the worst. My mother made countless trips to the principal’s office to address the bullying; I was moved to different schools. Nothing worked.

Of course there was the everyday name calling and disrespect concerning my different appearance. But there were other, darker incidents. One day the police were called when two boys decided to practice martial arts on me. They were proud of their black and brown belts and they used the associated knowledge and skill to kick my legs black and blue. I just stood there and took the beating. The teacher I reported it to immediately after the incident ignored it. Later, the principal both asked what I had done to instigate the attack and questioned the origin of the injuries. The female member who investigated at that time didn’t have a lot of the procedural options we have today to properly address such issues. There were no real repercussions for the boys. My mother was asked to stop sending me to school in clothing that exposed my legs as the bruising was making other people feel uncomfortable; she declined this request.

The first time I remember being called the "N word" occurred in Grade 3 or 4. The word was delivered by a fellow classmate with such vitriol that I was shocked. I didn’t fight back when he spat in my face; I just took it. That one I didn’t tell my parents about.

And then there was the day I had enough. It was Grade 6. My class was wrapping up a sporting event on the school field and a female classmate called me that ugly word again. I decided to fight back and I called her the worst thing I could think of: "freckle face". Our teacher turned on me and reprimanded me in front of the entire class. He later admitted he’d heard the racial slur but had decreed that I should learn to keep silent and accept such abuse.

When I decided to become a police officer, for the first time in my life, I came to truly understand what it means to hold power. I was suddenly granted the ability to take away someone’s liberty and the responsibility to utilize appropriate force. I took this very seriously; I never wanted to forget what it was like to be my former, externally powerless self. I have come to accept my past experiences at the hands of authority figures who chose to abandon their responsibilities invested in that authority. I believe these experiences have helped me become an empathetic cop.

Sir Robert Peel, widely held to be the father of modern community policing, said that, "…the police are the public and the public are the police; the police being only members of the public who are paid to give full-time attention to duties which are incumbent on every citizen in the interests of community welfare and existence."

Yes, police hold power, but so too do our lawyers, judges, teachers, and principals. The bottom line is that our current circumstances are not just a policing issue. They are an issue of our classrooms and halls of justice; they are an issue of the executive board room and the bank or grocery store around the corner from your home. We all carry a responsibility to contribute to the interests of community welfare. It begins with openness, acceptance, kindness, and dialogue.

The overt racism I experienced in the community as a child has simmered down to the under-the-surface kind in adulthood. The thing is, pots left to simmer periodically boil over, as we have recently witnessed. My hope is that when the dust settles following this recent flashpoint, that people do not easily forget their current feelings of unease, but that they instead use those feelings to change our society for the better.

I’m hopeful that reasonable people will not let their current justifiable anger about the cases of violence and destruction cloud their desire to engage in dialogue and resolve our larger, underlying issues. I hope that our Canadian police continue to emphasize the value of community policing and that those civilians holding power in our communities do what they can to contribute to a more equitable society.

Sgt. Veronica Fox, BA MA DPS

Article link:
http://bc.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=2087&contentId=64835&languageId=1

 

[CBH99]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JoHjvrovn4A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3i7oAo5Snc


^^ I wanted to post this for anybody who hadn't seen the entire clip leading up to the incident.


1st clip - Edmonton Journal, showing the incident in full

2nd clip - CTV news, showing about 6 seconds of video, and 3 minutes of extreme bias & manipulating the general public



In my opinion, this has to be the most disgusting & blatant effort from CTV to manipulate the public.  Pls share with anybody you can.  :2c:

 

[QV]

The only thing that surprises me is that, in June of 2020, there are still people apparently surprised when they finally learn the MSM is not an honest broker.

 

[Xylric]

The only thing that surprises me is that, in June of 2020, there are still people apparently surprised when they finally learn the MSM is not an honest broker.

It hasn't been for several thousand years!

I swear, sometimes I think the saying "plus ça change, plus c'est la même chose" is a good foundation for a religious order of some kind.

 

[CBH99]

Not surprised in the slightest.

I guess what I was surprised by isn't the bias, or the short selection of video they chose to show. 

It was the combination of a very short, selection of video combined with her "Only 4 seconds after he gets out of his vehicle, he is violently tackled to the ground" - a blatant lie, since she's surely seen the video in full. 


He's outside of his vehicle for a whole lot longer than 4 seconds, and he wasn't tackled because he's native.  And he is their Chief?  Probably time for some new leadership.,

We all know the media is biased.  I guess what really grinds my gears in regards to this particular situation is that almost all Canadian media outlets went along with the same narrative, about him being tackled to the ground as soon as he got out of his vehicle, over an expired plate.  When in reality, they most likely all had access to the full clip, and chose the same deceptive narrative.


If they were being honest, the headlines would have read along the lines of "Drunk Chief's Arrest Caught on Camera" -- and allow people to watch the video, and come to their own conclusions.

 

[QV]

I think bias is a wild understatement.  You're correct, this is a blatant lie.  Designed to cause civil unrest, I'd say, what other reason would there be?  Isn't that a crime?

(PS: Trump was right again. Fake news is the enemy of the people. Don't hate me.)

 

[Remius]

Not fake news, just edited to fit a narrative would be my guess.

 

[Brad Sallows]

So what, then, is "fake news", if deception isn't included?

 

[FJAG]

I think bias is a wild understatement.  You're correct, this is a blatant lie.  Designed to cause civil unrest, I'd say, what other reason would there be?  Isn't that a crime?

(PS: Trump was right again. Fake news is the enemy of the people. Don't hate me.)

So what, then, is "fake news", if deception isn't included?

Complaints can be made against Canadian media agencies through the National NewsMedia Council here:

https://mediacouncil.ca/

The media is a self-regulating one. Before making a complaint to them (which needs to be done within one month) you need to contact the media agency being complained about first.

CTV News Editorial Standards are here: https://www.ctvnews.ca/editorial-standards-and-policies

While I found no specific link for filing complaints, the Standards page has both a phone number and email link for Public Engagement:

Here’s how you can reach us: 416-384-6300 or ctvnews.caproducers@bellmedia.ca.

I agree with you. The piece was misleading from the get-go in that they made it appear that this "tackle" came out of the blue "4 seconds after exiting the vehicle" without any mention of the prior and significant interaction.

I encourage you to file a complaint. Nothing will ever change unless you become involved.

:cheers:

 

[Jarnhamar]

https://www.google.ca/amp/s/torontosun.com/news/local-news/halton-cop-suspended-after-shoving-video-surfaces/amp

Hard to tell the kids race, possibly not Caucasian. Pretty sad video regardless.

Nice to see the police department suspending the officer quickly.

 

[CBH99]

https://www.google.ca/amp/s/torontosun.com/news/local-news/halton-cop-suspended-after-shoving-video-surfaces/amp

Hard to tell the kids race, possibly not Caucasian. Pretty sad video regardless.

Nice to see the police department suspending the officer quickly.

On the surface, the video looks unprofessional and bad.

If there is one thing we were all reminded of recently, however, is how the 'full video' can show a very different story, re: RCMP situation with the Chief in Alberta.



That video showed only about 6 seconds of a situation, and was narrated dishonestly by a majority of the news outlets.

I'd like to see the full video of this situation also, if available.


*Personally, I doubt an officer just walked up and started bullying/shoving this kid around and the other officers just stood around.  Perhaps I'm wrong.  I am guessing there is more to this story than just 'grumpy cop shoves around annoying kid'.* 

(Although things could be EXACTLY as they appear, and I'm wrong.)

 

[Jarnhamar]

Agreed full videos can show a different situation.

I'm curious too.  I'm trying to think of a scenario where it's proper to shove a kid down. When he gets up hit him with his bag. Shove him again. Shove him again. Shove him again. Shove him again. Kick his property across the road. Shove him. Shove him from behind. Kick his property across the road again. Hit him a couple more times then take him down.

 

[CBH99]

Totally agree with ya Jarn.  100%.  :cheers:

Obviously wasn't handled well. 


Just saying, curious to see what led up to it going down that way.