Black community members encouraged to know their rights under new policing powers in Ontario

Black community leaders in Waterloo region say they continue to have concerns about policing powers in the province under the current stay-at-home order and want to help people understand their rights going forward.

Last week, Premier Doug Ford announced stricter COVID-19 restrictions which included new police powers to stop pedestrians on the street or in vehicles if they appear to be violating COVID-19 protocols. This sparked backlash from many people.

The province walked back some of its new policing powers one day after they were announced after several police forces said they would not stop people.

Still, marginalized community members in Waterloo region continue to worry. Community development co-ordinator of the African, Caribbean, Black Network of Waterloo Region, Lang Ncube, says she was shocked and disappointed about the government's announcement. After those emotions, came worries for the Black community. 

"I was feeling a bit scared of what exactly those powers meant for the Black community, particularly because we know the relationship the police has with the Black community," Ncube said. 

"For me, I was scared to kind of imagine what exactly random stops, going back to carding, would look like and what that does to our population and what [kind of] violence that could possibly incite."

Ncube says Black residents in the region also shared similar feelings regarding the new rules and undocumented residents expressed their fears and concerns about their immigration status.

"There were some people we were connected to that were worried about [their] immigration status because when you're providing police the power to stop anyone at any time, this causes a really big problem for folks that may be undocumented or people who have precarious immigration status," said Ncube. 

African-Canadians continue to be over-represented in data

Data from the Waterloo Regional Police Service shows Black people continue to be over-represented in matters that concern carding and intelligence notes.

In 2016, the Waterloo Regional Police Services provided a report looking at the 10-year period from 2005 to 2015 that showed officers stopped individuals identified as African-Canadians, 5,800 times. 

A street check generally involves an officer stopping a person to ask for their ID or identifying information, an intelligence note can include the documentation of an officer's observations, details noted during an arrest, or information gleaned from a third-party source.

Last Saturday, Solicitor General Sylvia Jones said officers could not do random stops, but they could stop a person if they "suspect that you are participating in an organized public event or social gathering" and officers "may require you to provide information to ensure you are complying with restrictions."

Kitchener Centre MPP Laura Mae Lindo, who is chair of the NDP's Black caucus, tweeted that it wasn't enough of a change from what the province had announced the day before.

"To racialized people: Be safe. You know the drill. To allies: Watch out for us. Tape, witness, check in," Lindo tweeted.

'We would not be stopping anybody'

The Waterloo Regional Police Service was the first police service to clarify their position with Ontario's new police powers, both publicly and internally, Chief Bryan Larkin says. The statement said officers would not randomly stop individuals or vehicles.

"We would not be actually stopping anybody based on race, based on gender, in fact, anybody randomly," Larkin said in an interview.

Larkin said he recognizes that members of marginalized communities continue to be stopped by the police despite the abolition of carding practices established since 2004.

"Any police stop has to be within a lawful context. There has to be reasonable articulation as to why we stop individuals," said Larkin. "That's the foundations and principles in the regulated interactions legislature."

Regardless of the statements made by numerous police services across Ontario, Ncube still has concerns.

"We've been seeing the videos that are being posted and people have been sharing their stories of being detained or being pulled over and being questioned," she said.

"It's very hard to trust what the police is saying, on the other hand we have very tangible evidence showing otherwise."

'Marginalized communities must stick together'

In light of the fear, concern and confusion people are feeling, the ACB Network is working to provide resources to Black residents. 

Ncube says they're working on ways to empower others and inform them of their rights. That includes providing resources that are primarily run by Black people, for instance the Black Legal Action Centre. The ACB Network has used them to provide help for individuals who have dealt with police.

"We've had a couple of people who we've dealt with personally, that are lawyers who are willing to give up their own time to help people that have some issues with police encounter," Ncube said.

Black Lives Matter Guelph released a statement on their Instagram story to highlight their support for Black people in the community who need help.

"If you're Black and find yourself stopped by police, please reach out to us and we will try to support you however we can. We can also reach out to Black Legal Action Centre on your behalf if you experience issues with police and/or need legal advice," the story said.

Knia Singh is the principal lawyer at Maa'at Legal Services in Scarborough. He says people have the right to remain silent and to not answer any questions unrelated to the scope of the Highway Traffic Act if they are pulled over.

"Any thing outside of [the Act] is not permissible by law ... any driver of the vehicle doesn't have to answer beyond that if they feel they don't want to and passengers in vehicles are not subject to questioning or verification identity," said Singh. 

Singh encourages marginalized communities to stick together and be there for one another.

"Marginalized communities must stick together, they must share information and they must document and remember everything they can," Singh told CBC News.

"Because if they're ever approached or treated unfairly, if they can remember a badge number, time, location, description, all these things will help when they need to actually make a complaint about any misconduct received."