End discriminatory police checks
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Dear friends and supporters,
Over 1,400 people have called on the BC government to develop policies that will end the practice of discriminatory street checks by police. Your support for ending discrimination in policing has been nothing short of incredible.
But the fight is not over yet. We need the BC government to take action and establish a provincial standard that addresses racial bias in policing now.
In calling for provincial regulation, we echo the racialized communities across Canada who have spoken out about the practice of street checks.
Most recently and as a result of tireless work by racialized communities, Ontario implemented a provincial policy to address racial bias in 'carding'. This regulation imposes a positive duty on police officers to inform a person being street checked that they do not have to provide their personal information to the officer.
The Ontario example is just one possibility of what a provincial policy could look like on the ground in BC. Currently, there is no provincial regulation in BC, but concrete change is possible.
The BC government has an important role to play in regulating policing, and we need them to commit to ending this discriminatory practice.
The time has come for concrete action and change to end discriminatory street checks. Stand with us today.
Sincerely,
Dylan Mazur
Community Lawyer, BCCLA