Sept 16, 2022
CBC News – Olivia Stefanovich
Cindy Blackstock asks Human Rights Tribunal to reject $20B child welfare compensation deal – Blackstock says the fixed sum doesn’t guarantee complainants a minimum amount
In a surprising reaction to the $40 billion total agreement – $20 billion for reparations and $20 billion for long-term reform – to compensate for discrimination in the First Nations child welfare program, Blackstock wants to send the agreement back to the Human Rights Tribunal on the grounds that the principles of reparation on which the agreement were based are already in violation. She is calling for the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal to review the $20 billion of reparation on the grounds that the agreement “…denies or provides a lesser value of compensation to some victims who have experienced the worst-case scenario of discrimination and creates significant uncertainty for other victims.” https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canadian-human-rights-tribunal-20-billion-hearings-1.6582832
Blogger Russell Webster (UK)
Constructive resettlement for children in custody
Webster notes the launch of a new hub by the London Resettlement Project. “The LRP launched in 2020 with partners including all 32 London Boroughs, Association of London Directors of Children’s Services, Ministry of Justice, Youth Justice Board, Youth Custody Service, Mayors Office for Policing and Crime and NHS England. The LRP aims to improve outcomes for children by working in partnership to present real opportunities that support their return to the community with the aim of reducing reoffending.” The launch of resources around custodial children after custody has four sections: a theory, a toolkit, stories from practionners, and frequently asked questions. The launch also includes an introductory video and remarks from Professor Neal Hazel, a leading academic on the issue. https://www.russellwebster.com/constructive-resettlement-for-children-in-custody/
Maytree (Canada) – Garima Talwar Kapoor, Mohy Tabbara, Sherri Hanley, Sasha McNicoll
How to reduce the depth of single adult poverty in Canada: Proposal for a Canada Working-Age Supplement
The latest report starts with the thesis that “Working-age single adults without children (or unattached single adults) face the highest rates and deepest levels of poverty in Canada.” The group represents about half of those living “in deep poverty in Canada.” The remedy is a refundable tax credit for all unattached single adults living in poverty, complementing the social safety net but allowing for transformation of poverty lifestyle. Full report: https://maytree.com/wp-content/uploads/canada-working-age-supplement-report.pdf Executive Summary: https://maytree.com/wp-content/uploads/canada-working-age-supplement-upshot.pdf
The Conversation (Queen’s) – Vincent Wong
An Ontario crackdown on massage parlours continues Canada’s legacy of anti-Asian racism
Newmarket (ON) has begun a crackdown designed in the words of its Deputy Mayor Tom Vegh, “drive [sex work] out of town.” The focus of the effort seems specifically Asian businesses: “The crackdown has resulted in disproportionate illegalization, surveillance, harassment, ticketing and displacement of many of Newmarket’s Asian-owned massage businesses and their workers… What many people may not know, however, is how Newmarket’s crackdown is representative of a long history of racist bylaws and licensing regimes targeting Asian businesses that hearken back to an era of unapologetic Canadian white nationalism.” https://theconversation.com/an-ontario-crackdown-on-massage-parlours-continues-canadas-legacy-of-anti-asian-racism-189208?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20September%2015%202022&utm_content=Latest%20from%20The%20Conversation%20for%20September%2015%202022+CID_ed7aec3f32529de2c35ae50732ba9f67&utm_source=campaign_monitor_ca&utm_term=An%20Ontario%20crackdown%20on%20massage%20parlours%20continues%20Canadas%20legacy%20of%20anti-Asian%20racism
CTV News – Judy Trinh
Anti-hate experts urge action against right-wing extremism in Canada
The Canadian Anti-Hate Network, one of the participants in an international conference held in Ottawa this week, is voicing some somber warnings about the rise of hatred in Canada and the growing acceptance of conspiracy theory. “Evan Balgord, the executive director of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network, says the convoy’s organizers were able to successfully use the month-long February protest to recruit vaccine-hesitant people into their movement… “They were now rubbing shoulders with, you know, racists and bigots and people who would like to use violence to overthrow the government. A portion of those people are getting further radicalized.” https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/anti-hate-experts-urge-action-against-right-wing-extremism-in-canada-1.6070585
Washington Post (US) – Kimberly Kindy
Insurers force change on police departments long resistant to it – The high cost of settlements over police misconduct has led insurers to demand police departments overhaul tactics or forgo coverage
Besides the criminal conduct of police, insurers are also feeling the pinch on other kinds of liability from police action and legal responsibility. The insurers, often a risk pooling trust, do risk assessment and are beginning to subject the insurance to more cost but also fewer high risk activities. St. Ann (Missouri) Police Chief Aaron Jimenez: agreed to ban high speed pursuits: ““I didn’t really have a choice,” Jimenez said in an interview. “If I didn’t do it, the insurance rates were going to go way up. I was going to have to lose 10 officers to pay for it. …For police departments within these pools, the serious risks they may take can also drive up rates and deductibles for other members. Because of this, the pool may threaten to expel a city, county or township if its police department refuses to take steps to minimize risk.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2022/police-misconduct-insurance-settlements-reform/?utm_campaign=wp_post_most&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&wpisrc=nl_most&carta-url=https%3A%2F%2Fs2.washingtonpost.com%2Fcar-ln-tr%2F37eb532%2F6321fd7af3d9003c58d6b31d%2F597720279bbc0f6826c0ca16%2F26%2F72%2F6321fd7af3d9003c58d6b31d&wp_cu=fb96708e020cba40746ac3907d799fbc%7C47D0917CB1DA3119E0530100007F9CD3
The Crime Report (US) – James Van Bramer
‘The Injustice of Under-Policing in America’: Paper
The headline and the paper may be prompted by the recent federal funding of an additional 100,000 police officers in the US, a country already 18,000 plus police forces and a 10-1 ratio of private security guards to official police, or 212 police officers for every 100,000 residents and 3 of 10 Americans incarcerated for every police officer. Most advocates would suggest the opposite – more police means more arrests and likely more targeting of vulnerable populations for prison fodder. The report authors are Harvard professors: “Christopher Lewis is an assistant professor at Harvard Law School. Adaner Usmani is an assistant professor of sociology at Harvard University… They admit their argument is mainly theoretical but say the empirical evidence they provide allows for meaningful discourse in the endless U.S. mass incarceration debate.” https://thecrimereport.org/2022/09/14/the-u-s-is-under-policed-study/
Alex Karakatsanis Newsletter (US)
A Guide for Reading and Writing About Crime: Helpful tips for journalists and readers
Karakatsanis talks about copaganda or media articles and narratives that offer an undeservedly biased view of policing, one that helps shape our response to crime, an issue that is part of every election. Both the police and media, he says, distract us from what matters in their crime reporting and he offers some analysis and guidelines for sorting out the reports. https://equalityalec.substack.com/p/a-guide-for-reading-and-writing-about He further offers an analysis of the corporate support for the copaganda (Corporate media and the rise of fascism https://equalityalec.substack.com/p/corporate-media-and-the-rise-of-fascism ) and tips for reporters and readers (Questions to Ask Police Chiefs https://equalityalec.substack.com/p/questions-to-ask-police-chiefs )