OCASI letter to Toronto Star, sent on May 15, 2015
OCASI would like to commend Ontario Superior Court Justice Frederick Myers for his recent ruling on police carding in favor of a Sudanese immigrant who was profiled and assaulted by police for exercising his right. The ruling is a first step in the right direction and underscores what a growing number of people in Toronto believes must happen - the end of carding and other racial profiling activities in the name of 'public safety'.
Racialized people - black people in particular - are disproportionately affected by carding. Social integration becomes more difficult for racialized immigrants and jobs that require a police clearance may be inaccessible as a result of carding. In the absence of any evidence that carding prevents crime or makes communities safer, OCASI calls upon Mayor John Tory and the Police Services Board and Chief Mark Saunders to discontinue the use of this practice.
Debbie Douglas,
Executive Director
See Links:
Group questions why Toronto police don't have stats to defend carding
Toronto Star, May 13, 2015
A beating underlines need for reform of ‘carding’: Editorial
Toronto Star, May 13, 2015