Policing, Privacy, and Parks
- Details
- Published on Thursday, 06 August 2020 08:36
- Written by editor
Dear BCCLA Supporter,
You may have heard about our recent advocacy with partner organizations against the cruel Bill 22 creating a new form of detention and involuntary health care in BC for youth who have overdosed. The government announced they are pausing the bill! This is an important victory, and we continue to advocate for the bill to be fully withdrawn.
Here’s an inside look into what else has been brewing at the BCCLA during the past two months.
Read my latest blog hereEnding Street Checks:
- We have been advocating for an immediate ban on police street checks across BC. There is growing momentum, with over 7,800 signatories to our petition and two unanimous City Council motions calling for an end to the... practice. Sign the petition here if you haven’t already.
Privacy Matters:
- We participated in the first round of hearings at the Cullen Commission of Inquiry into Money Laundering in BC to bring forward our unique perspective on civil liberties and privacy.
- At the federal level, we called for a ban on the use of all facial recognition surveillance by law-enforcement and intelligence agencies.
- We expressed concerns to the federal government during the development of the new contact-tracing app. We are cautiously optimistic that COVID-Alert will meet most of our key privacy and oversight principles; however, we remain concerned by government claims that the new app is not subject to the Privacy Act.
Criminalization of Poverty:
- We are urging municipal governments and parks boards to suspend enforcement of the prohibition on sheltering in parks to allow sheltering in parks for homeless people.
Prisons & Criminal Legal System:
- In addition to the close of our solitary confinement litigation, we are celebrating a victory in our Supreme Court of Canada legal intervention, R v. Zora. The Court held that bail conditions must be consistent with the presumption of innocence, which will have a far-reaching impact on over-policed communities.
Read more in my full piece here.
Whether you come to our work because you care about a particular issue or because of the intersecting nature of our work, we’re grateful to have your support in the fight for civil liberties and human rights. It is an honour for us to be doing this work alongside many allied organizations and with your support.
In solidarity,
Harsha Walia (she/her/hers)
Executive
Director
