Combatting hate as extremists move online presents new challenges, experts tell Calgary police commission
Propaganda aimed at radicalizing new recruits ‘can really draw you in’
Calgary police say they're facing new challenges as hate crimes and extremism "flare up" across North America.
One is how to monitor extremist groups as they move recruitment from public protests into private, online spaces.
"In 2018, police saw a big decrease in public protests," said Const. Craig Collins, the Calgary police's hate crime coordinator, during a presentation to the police commission on Tuesday.
"[They're] moving away from the actual physical protest, because it doesn't achieve a whole lot, and we're now looking at [social] media and these high-quality propaganda videos. That's, I think, some of the new challenges we're going to face, are capturing our children that are getting involved in that propaganda and those new sites that can really draw you in."
Collins and other officers and experts spoke to the police commission about extremism, radicalization, and hate crimes — and how police are working to fight back.
A recent study conducted by the Organization for the Prevention of Violence (OPV), found a 78 per cent rise in reported hate crimes in Alberta between 2014 and 2017, Collins said, but added he doesn't feel that paints a full picture, as the numbers have actually fluctuated yearly.
In Calgary, there were 77 reported hate crimes in 2017. That was up from 50 the year before, which was down from 61 the previous year.
But the bigger number police track, Collins said, is hate incidents.
In 2017, Collins said, police started recording hate incidents internally — situations where no criminal offence has occurred but where hate was a motivator — because there are more of those incidents than crimes, and there's still an expectation for police to help bring about a resolution.
"I actually think they're under-recorded stats," Collins said. "I think in 2018 we'll see a sharp rise."
Collins said police have to serve two roles when it comes to these problems — partially to investigative, and partially to reassure and support communities.
He pointed to one incident where a transgender girl was being bullied at school, but an investigation didn't find any crime had been committed.
He said police connected the mom with resources from the LGBTQ community over a period of months.
"She wasn't looking for a criminal conviction, she was looking for some support," he said.
Would I say, 'oh, OK, we're doing a great job?' No, I don't think so.- Deputy Chief Steve Barlow
Sometimes, building those community relationships means connecting with the same groups that are accused of spreading hate.
Collins described an incident in 2017 where police talked a right-wing group out of a protest overs concerns that they would be targeted, and removed the group from the location.
"The challenge for the police when it comes to our right-wing groups and our left-wing groups is freedom of speech is a very thin line," he said, adding that stopping the protest was a win for multiple reasons.
"The confrontation helps encourage their opinion, it helps get them that propaganda video, so it's more success in removing that."
Deputy Chief Sat Parhar said it's tough when police have to work with extremist groups, but that officers are in a difficult position as the bar for prosecuting incitement and willful promotion of hate are high. He said he does feel that "hate is rising."
"We don't condone hate … but the reality is we're kind of limited with the law," he said.
"It's not comfortable … but it's necessary."
Acting Chief Steve Barlow said while Calgary hasn't seen an increase in extremism, he doesn't want to see it become a trend.
"I'm seeing flare ups all over North America. When it comes to Calgary, we're seeing a bit of a dip. Would I say, 'oh, OK, we're doing a great job?' No, I don't think so," he said. "We don't want to see this become another crime trend that's going to take us in a poor direction."
With files from Colleen Underwood