Police diversity trainer says De Caire should apologize for racially charged email
Samantha Craggs | CBC News | Posted: September 15, 2015 9:45 AM | Last Updated: September 15, 2015
Chief says attempt to support his officers is being misinterpreted
A community advocate who has advised Hamilton's police chief on racism and diversity says the chief should publicly apologize for forwarding a racially charged email to his officers.
Evelyn Myrie, a Hamilton consultant and former executive director of the Hamilton Centre for Civic Inclusion (HCCI), says she spoke to Chief Glenn De Caire on the weekend and told him directly she believes he should issue a formal apology.
"I'd like it if he came out and really made amends to people," she said. "It needs extra work to talk to people and explain because people are a bit annoyed."
Myrie is one of several anti-racism advocates to demand an apology from the chief and argue the email sends a damaging message to the black community.
My community has a right to be upset and disappointed at the same time. - Evelyn Myrie, local diversity consultant
Myrie has given De Caire's officers racism and diversity training, and De Caire has always made sure they had plenty of training, she said. He's also the first chief to contribute money for a John Holland Award for young black Hamiltonians.
But Myrie said the email incident disappointed her.
"My community has a right to be upset and disappointed at the same time," she said.
De Caire drew criticism last week when it was revealed he had forwarded an email to front-line officers from a citizen who said it's "time for these black kids to stop blaming the police."
De Caire passed on the message from a citizen thanking officers for their work in a recent North End homicide. The message, which was distributed through Hamilton Police Service's internal communications system, included a signed, handwritten note from De Caire at the bottom saying, "All of our officers who responded to the recent homicide did a great job. Keep up the good work."
'One little line at the bottom'
"I just wanted to say thank you to Hamilton Police for all the hard work they are doing in regards to this senseless killing," the citizen said in the email, which the Hamilton Spectator posted on its website.
Anybody who wants to infuse something different, they are wrong. - Chief Glenn De Caire on CHML
"I also wanted to say that I believe it is time for these black kids to stop blaming the police for the problems and take responsibility for the actions of the youth."
Lloyd Ferguson, an Ancaster councillor and police services board chair, defended the chief's action, saying he was just trying to thank the officers.
"It was just this one little line at the bottom," Ferguson said.
"I don't take any strong issue with this. It was how a citizen felt. He conveyed that to the service…But I don't think it sets the tone of a culture as much as is being alleged."
In an interview on CHML last week, De Caire had the same message, saying he wanted to congratulate officers who dealt with a tense situation the night of the murder.
Interpretations of email are 'driving a wedge' between citizens and police
"For anybody to infuse any other intentions or to impart their own intentions into that citizen's comments is inappropriate," he said. "They can go right ahead and do that, but it's driving a wedge between the community and the police service that doesn't need to be there."
You have two individuals who have never experienced racism. They have to listen to our explanations and understand why we say it's racist. - Kojo Damptey
"Anybody who wants to infuse something different, they are wrong."
But Myrie worries the situation has been damaging. "It doesn't help build strong community relations," she said.
Kojo Damptey, an anti-racism advocate, musician and Ghanan native who sits on the OPIRG McMaster board, said the chief and Ferguson should both apologize.
Expert gives two scenarios
"That shows that yes, they've made a mistake and are willing to learn and change some of their attitudes that they continue to perpetrate," he said.
"You have two individuals who have never experienced racism. They have to listen to our explanations and understand why we say it's racist. Him doing that is endorsing racism and is perpetuating what we continue to say over and over and over again."
Akwasi Owusu-Bempah, a Toronto professor and criminologist who recently wrote about black men and the Toronto police, also said the email has perhaps "provided some insight into what is deemed acceptable in Hamilton's police culture."
"I see this as the outcome of one of two possible scenarios," Owusu-Bempah said. "One, the chief did not recognize the content of the language as problematic. That is troubling.
"Two, the chief supports the assertion made by the member of the public. That's more troubling."