July 14, 2016
Toronto Star – Reid Rusonik
Police, blacks both victims of an attempt at social control
Rusonik offers a perspective on the history of confrontation between police and Black persons in both the US and Canada, suggesting that the common element is one of attempting social control in the face of fear of the other. “This isn’t planned — there is no malevolent brain trust directing it — but a system originally designed for social control is vulnerable to individual acts of choosing security and one’s own privilege over social justice.” https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2016/07/13/police-blacks-both-victims-of-an-attempt-at-social-control.html Related article: CBC News Lucas Powers Open-carry gun laws create chaos, fuel ‘us vs. them’ mentality of police – Upcoming GOP convention in Cleveland could see a host of armed groups demonstrating http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/dallas-police-shootings-open-carry-laws-protests-1.3673819
Toronto Star – Kevin Donovan
Task force report on medical regulatory bodies kept secret over defamation concerns
A task force to investigate sexual abuse among the medical professionals in Ontario has been judged by outsiders as defamatory and is, at least for the moment, to be kept secret. Set up in December 2014 to “help prevent and deal with cases of sexual abuse of patients by regulated health professionals,” the report already has numerous sections removed and no one willing to suggest its future in whatever format. https://www.thestar.com/news/queenspark/2016/07/13/task-force-report-on-medical-regulatory-bodies-kept-secret-over-defamation-concerns.html
Toronto Star – Colin Perkel
Anglicans discover mistake in same-sex marriage vote, leading to stunning reversal
Shortly after acknowledging a marginal defeat by its Synod on a vote approving same sex marriage, the Anglicans have discovered a counting error that reverses the previous conclusion and have accept the proposition in favour of same sex marriage. The resolution failed by a single vote among the clergy segment of the Synod. https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/07/12/some-canadian-anglican-bishops-to-approve-same-sex-marriage-despite-church-ruling.html
CBC News – Jacques Marcoux, Katie Nicholson, Vera-Lynn Kubinec, Holly Moore
Police diversity fails to keep pace with Canadian populations – Halifax is the only major force that accurately reflects its community, Hamilton is close
The ideal held is that the police force should reflect the racial and ethnic diversity of the community itself in order to better serve the community. Surprisingly, in Canada, only one city does so with a second coming close. The article includes a listing of the major cities and the percentage of compliance. Most police forces have a diversity but there may be a shortfall in the reporting where the size impacts the diversity of the community and the police. RCMP in the north and Quebec generally are both low on the response to diversity. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/police-diversity-canada-1.3677952
Toronto Star – Azeezah Kanji
Many damning truths but no justice in the “war on terror”
The renewed US talk about the use of torture in the confrontation with terror makes this article helpful in reflecting what happened in the recent past and the justification. Kanji bemoans the “cycle of secrecy, exposé, and impunity” and ultimately the failure to remediate. https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2016/07/14/many-damning-truths-but-no-justice-in-the-war-on-terror.html
Globe and Mail – Gloria Galloway
Veterans with mental illness forced to wait months for treatment coverage
The recurrence of the plight of the vets in the nation’s headline is mystifying. Again, the problem is the shortage of services and long delay in vets getting mental health services – a matter of months – before the federal government will acknowledge that it will pay for psychological treatment. There have been 62 suicides of vets consequent to the Afghanistan involvement, many of whom suffered from depression and PTSD. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/veterans-with-mental-illnesses-forced-to-wait-months-for-treatment-coverage/article30900508/