Expert psychiatrist testifies on institutional racism at Andrew Loku inquest

On the last day of live testimony at the inquest into the death of Andrew Loku, an international expert testified on institutional racism.

Selwyn Pieters, a lawyer representing the Black Action Defence Committee, had planned to file a last-minute application asking the coroner to allow the issue of racism and racial profiling to be discussed by Kwame McKenzie, a psychiatrist and director of health equity at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). 

The presiding coroner, Dr. John Carlisle, had thus far allowed the exploration of implicit bias in the inquest.

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Pieters's application asked that McKenzie "be permitted to testify in respect to racism...particularly systemic and institutional racism."

Before he could officially file the motion in the inquest, both sides of counsel met and agreed that McKenzie could testify and discuss institutional racism.

"The implicit bias aspect of racism is in fact within the scope of issues being examined by the jury," said Michael Blain, the coroner's counsel. 

"There was a meeting with all the counsels and there was an agreement that we would proceed on the basis on how we planned," Pieters said. "Dr. McKenzie was able to give us evidence unimpeded in respect to racism and what institutional structures need to be changed in order to foster a culturally inclusive environment that is free from racism."

When questioned about institutional racism at the inquest on Tuesday, McKenzie said "training by itself won't make the difference... more has to happen throughout the institution."

He was asked whether police officers should assume that someone they are approaching has experienced trauma. Referencing himself, he said yes, and to explain he went on that if he were to assume that someone exhibiting challenging behaviour had experienced trauma, "It changes how I think about them. It changes how I react to them... it changes what I do."

Loku, 45, was shot twice and killed in a confrontation with police officers just after midnight in the hallway of an apartment complex in Toronto's west end on July 5, 2015.

The father of five, who came to Canada as a refugee from South Sudan, was wielding a hammer at the time of the incident. 

Loku was shot after he refused to comply with police demands to drop the hammer, according to Ontario's Special Investigations Unit (SIU).