This month, Nova Scotia passed a law banning street checks – but what will change? Even before Retired Justice Michael MacDonald’s 108-page report concluded that street checking – the practice of stopping of citizens to collect and record their personal information — contravenes freedoms guaranteed by the Charter and at common law, street checking had […]
What did Halifax’s new police chief Dan Kinsella learn in Hamilton?
Hamilton is the hate crime capital of Canada, but instead of investigating the white supremacist and other right-wing terrorist groups targeting Black, Jewish, and the LGBTQ communities, Hamilton police trained its investigative unit on people of colour and anarchists. And, with Kinsella in an administrative position, the Hamilton police adopted new methods of surveillance of marginalized people, and bloated its budget with the purchase of militarized equipment.
Since his arrival in Halifax and swearing in this summer, Halifax police chief Dan Kinsella has been making the rounds, meeting with police and community members. As the legislature returns for the fall session, questions will resume about street checks, and how the government and police intend to address the issues raised by the Wortley […]
Board looks to expand police data collection to identify race-based patterns in all police stops
Morning File, Tuesday, September 17, 2019
News 1. Police data collection The police board has approved a motion to ask Halifax Regional Police for a plan to implement a Wortley report recommendation that would see racial data collected on all police stops, including traffic stops. Currently, that data is only collected for street checks, and shows that Black Haligonians are six […]
New top cop Dan Kinsella: no racial profiling, just “some inequalities, some negative experiences”
Morning File, Wednesday, July 10, 2019
News 1. New police chief won’t say “racial bias” Dan Kinsella, the new Halifax police chief was a guest on CBC Radio’s Information Morning today. Host Portia Clark, in her polite and persistent way, pressed him a couple of times on the question of street checks and racial profiling. Asked about street checks, Kinsella replied: […]
A lot of people in Halifax will be hungover at work on Thursday
Morning File, Tuesday, May 21, 2019
News 1. Gold “Here’s the deal,” writes Joan Baxter: On Wednesday, May 14, an Australian gold mining company called St. Barbara Limited, with one gold mine in Australia and a second one in Papua New Guinea, agreed to pay $722 million for Atlantic Gold Corporation, which operates one open pit gold mine in Nova Scotia, […]
“Do right by me”: by not addressing the systematic racism of street checks, the white power structure is doubling down on Nova Scotia’s well-earned reputation for ignorance, stigma, and stench
“Until you do right by me, everything you think about is gonna crumble.” Voiced by Whoopi Goldberg in her role as Celie in the film adaptation of The Color Purple, the line has recently wafted, repeatedly, through my mind. To be sure, the thought has been prompted by the magnificent production of The Color Purple […]
New police chief Dan Kinsella holds a degree from WalMart U.
Morning File, Tuesday, May 14, 2019
News 1. Ramadan in jail “Malik is calling from the jail asking for the numbers of any Muslims he can contact just to talk to, maybe hear some Quran from,” writes El Jones: The last time he prayed with community was during Ramadan last year, and since then, his requests for spiritual services have been […]
A squirrelly situation: lessons in urban planning
Morning File, Thursday, May 2, 2019
1. Active transportation “The nine-kilometre long Burnside Connector highway will cost at least $196 million, more than the entire Integrated Mobility Plan for active transportation and transit projects across the city,” reports Examiner transportation columnist Erica Butler. “No one said the highway was too expensive, but councillors cry poverty when it comes to actually addressing […]
1940s writing tips from New York City via Royal Sweets in New Glasgow
Morning File, Thursday, April 18, 2019
News 1. Work-related deaths nearly double in Nova Scotia Yesterday, the Workers’ Compensation Board of Nova Scotia released numbers on work-related injuries or deaths. The big item: the number of people who either died at work or from work-related illnesses nearly doubled last year, from 21 to 40. Some of these deaths are the result […]
Anthony Leblanc rolls into to town and all the public consultation about Shannon Park is thrown out the window
Morning File, Monday, April 1, 2019
News 1. Street checks Saturday, young people in Halifax’s Black community led a conversation at the North Library about Scot Wortley’s report on street checks and the effects of street checks on them. After the conversation, there was a march from the library to the police station (and then on to Province House) demanding an […]