In solidarity and protest, runners lap central police station after incident with BIPOC group

In a show of both solidarity and protest, a group of about 15 runners jogged three laps, Wednesday night, around Hamilton's central police station.

The run was meant to send the message that everyone should feel welcome on the city's streets.

It was organized after members of The Air Up There Run Crew, a group specifically set up for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, person of colour) runners, were questioned outside the station last week.

Mohamad Bsat, who is part of the crew, was there that night and said he and two other runners stopped to take some photos and video of a display of red dresses hanging in front of the police headquarters to raise awareness about missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls.

As they were leaving, he said police officers called out to them and began questioning them about what they were doing.

A spokesperson for Hamilton police previously said the runners were approached by two officers after they were flagged down by a "concerned citizen who reported the group for suspicious activity."

"The officers briefly spoke to the group near King Street before they continued on their run," Jackie Penman wrote in an email.

Bsat said the interaction made him feel "small" and "really dehumanized."

"We were judged and racially profiled because of the colour of our skin and we were made to feel like we weren't a part of this community, that we were seen as just threats," he said.

Penman said police take his concerns "extremely seriously" and that the service had contacted him.

Bsat requested an apology, but said a police representative informed him he would not receive one.

He told CBC he's filed a complaint with the Office of the Independent Police Review Director (OIPRD), which handles complaints about police in Ontario.

'These streets need to be safe'

Bsat posted about the interaction on Twitter, and called for other BIPOC runners to come out this week and join the crew for their regular five-kilometre workout.

Jessica Bonilla-Damptey was among those who strapped on running shoes and showed up.

"When I saw the post that came out on Twitter … I was outraged. I was disgusted. I was very, very saddened," she said.

A member of Sisters in Spirit Hamilton, which works to inform the public about murdered and missing Indigenous women, girls and transgender people across Canada, Bonilla-Damptey said she was "cautiously optimistic" about the red dress installation outside the police station.

But after what happened, she felt the need to come out with her family and walk in solidarity.

"These streets need to be safe for our kids, they need to be safe for us and they need to be safe for all of our communities."

Bsat said he was moved by the turnout, adding the crews has no plans to stop running.

"It's really powerful to see all these people come together to push back against systemic racism."