In the early evening hours of January 3, 2017, in remote Upper Big Tracadie, Nova Scotia, Lionel Desmond murdered his wife, Shanna, his daughter, Aaliyah, and his mother, Brenda, then turned the gun on himself. In the wake of such a horrific murder-suicide, two dueling narratives quickly emerged to try to explain the inexplicable. The […]
HRP files official motion to quash subpoenas for Kinsella, Boyd
Halifax Regional Police has filed an official motion to quash subpoenas for Halifax Police Chief Dan Kinsella, and Insp. Derrick Boyd to testify at the Nova Scotia Police Review Board appeal for Kayla Borden against members of the Halifax Regional Police. Halifax Regional Police lawyer Andrew Gough and Borden’s lawyer, Devin Maxwell, had until last […]
Turmoil continues at the Nova Scotia Barristers’ Society
Two more members of the society's council resigned this month as the self-governing organization charged with regulating the legal profession continues to grapple with accusations of systemic discrimination in its ranks.
I am writing to provide my notice of resignation from [the Bar Society] Council, effective immediately. I am resigning as a result of the direct and systemic racism and discrimination that I have experienced during my time on council. The racism and discrimination have largely been directed at [the Racial Equity Committee] and its members, […]
Kayla Borden’s lawyer launches online fundraiser for her Police Review Board appeal
The lawyer of a young Black woman has started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for her appeal at the Nova Scotia Police Review Board. In July 2020, Kayla Borden was driving home to Dartmouth after visiting a cousin in Bedford when she said she was pulled over, swarmed by six police officers, handcuffed, and […]
Guess how much it costs to eat on the beach at low tide?
Morning File, Tuesday, September 7, 2021
News 1. Mashing the reset button In his column this week, Stephen Kimber asks whether Tim Houston needs to hit reset on some of the incoming government’s attempts to reform the status quo. Kimber starts with a little history lesson on how we wound up with a slew of regional health authorities later consolidated into […]
Senator calls for action from Halifax councillors with presentation on anti-Black racism
Senator Dr. Wanda Thomas Bernard is calling on Halifax regional councillors to take action to combat anti-Black racism in the municipality. Bernard, an independent Canadian senator appointed in 2016, gave a roughly half-hour long presentation to council’s virtual meeting on Tuesday morning. The presentation, titled “Unpacking Anti‐Black Racism in the HRM: Creating Sustainable Change for […]
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 […]
What Black kids think about cops
It’s been an eventful week in police accountability in Canada. On Monday, the Ontario Human Rights Commission released a report on race and policing showing Black people are “overrepresented in several types of violent police interactions, including use-of-force cases, shootings, deadly encounters and fatal shootings.” The Broken Trust report from the Office of the Independent […]
Gorilla Warfare: Morning File, Saturday, August 27, 2016
1. Tylor McInnes and Doing Justice After the death of Tyler Richards, Tim wrote about some of the difficulties in reporting on death. I have been sitting beside people this week as their phones blew up with texts from reporters asking them if they wanted to comment on the death of Tylor McInnis, if they knew […]