The union that represents the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) says police officers are being unfairly targeted by accusations of systemic racism, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.
National Police Federation President Brian Sauvé recently told the Public Safety committee that there has been a dramatic rise in attacks on police officers in recent weeks.
“We support and protect every Canadians’ right to be treated fairly and equally. In return, we ask for respect and fairness for our members who put their lives on the line every day,” Sauvé said.
“We are hearing more cases of members being yelled at, confronted, spat on and assaulted while on duty. This is unacceptable. All Canadians should be free from harassment and assault including those on the front line.”
Anti-police rhetoric has dramatically increased since the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May which has led to worldwide protests. The protests have resulted in a push to arbitrarily defund police departments in both Canada and the United States.
Toronto City Council recently voted against a motion to cut the Toronto Police Services’ budget by 10%. At the same meeting, council voted to equipe all officers with body-cameras.
Union members that appeared before the committee did not name specific politicians, but accused their critics of scapegoating officers.
In June, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said systemic racism exists in all of Canada’s institutions, including all police forces. Trudeau also made an appearance at an anti-racism protest and took a knee.
During the committee, Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly said systemic racism “exists in Canadian policing and all Canadian institutions” but praised Canadian law enforcement as the best in the world.
“I’m a proud Black man, a proud native of Jamaica, and a proud Canadian citizen. I will start by unequivocally stating Canada is the best country in the world, that the Canadian policing model is the best in the world, and that Canadian police offices are among the finest people in the world,” he said.
“We actually need to stop calling our officers law enforcers. They are servers. They are protectors.”
