Hamilton police shouldn't pick who sits on race-based data advisory panel, advocate says

An anti-racism advocate says an "independent process" — not Hamilton Police Service (HPS) — should pick who sits on a community advisory panel set to inform the police service's new race-based data strategy.

Lyndon George, Hamilton Anti-Racism Resource Centre's (HARRC) executive director, shared those comments during a Thursday police board meeting.

Per a provincial mandate, HPS has been tracking the race and identity of people involved in use-of-force incidents since 2020 to expose any racial biases or stereotyping within police services.

Some advocates have said tracking the data is key to addressing community mistrust of police and discrimination by officers.

But, as the police services board heard in December, the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police said there has been a gap "between data collection requirements" and a strategy police services need in order to make "sustainable progress" against eliminating systemic racism in Ontario.

As a result, the association provided police services with a framework in October to create their own strategy tailored to their community.

HPS has said its strategy will include an internal project team and a community advisory panel. The panel would be composed of leaders "representing diverse racialized groups" who can "provide lived experience, insight, and civilian perspective."

During the board meeting George said he appreciates the initiative but said having the police service lead the creation of the panel has "potential implications."

George said the police service leading the creation of the panel could:

• Cause the public perception of a bias or conflict of interest and hinder trust.
• Discourage some people from participating in the process.
• Reinforce power imbalances between police and members of Black and Indigenous communities.

He asked the board to consider having an independent process lead the creation of the panel.

Dr. Anjali Menezes, who sits on the police board, said she wants the community to be engaged in the process.

Pat Mandy, chair of the board, noted the process is provincially-imposed.

Asked to clarify his comments, by board member and councillor Cameron Kroetsch, George said he wasn't suggesting the city doesn't follow the province's process but rather, it's important to have additional oversight from community members.

"The conversation has to be routed and led by community," he said.

Data released in 2023 showed Black people in Hamilton faced a "gross over-representation" among people police officers used force on, prompting advocates to call for immediate action — especially after HPS said the over-representation wasn't necessarily discrimination.

In addition to the "gross over-representation" of Black people in HPS's use of force, East and Southeast Asian people faced "gross over-representation" when it came to the use of force during arrests and apprehensions, while Black and Middle Eastern people were also "over-represented" in the same category.

While community groups have said discrimination is the driving force behind the disparities, HPS has said it doesn't know what factors were at play and the data alone may not be conclusive evidence of systemic racism.

HPS and more recently, Menezes, have raised concerns about the data and how it is collected.