Just days after the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission delivered its landmark report on street checks last March, DeRico Symonds took to the streets. Despite the report’s finding that Black people in Halifax were six times more likely to be stopped by police than their representation in the population would suggest, and the Black community’s […]
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Nova Scotia’s street check moratorium to become permanent ban
Seven months after the release of Scot Wortley’s report on street checks—which found that Black people were five to six times more likely to be street checked than their proportion of the population would predict—the province has made up its mind. Today, justice minister Mark Furey announced a permanent ban on the practice of street […]
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Street checks still dominate Board of Police Commissioners meetings
I t’s been a busy few months for the Halifax board of police commissioners, and its last meeting saw its first ever presentation from members of the public. The Halifax Coalition To Ban Street Checks presented a petition with 3,551—and counting—signatures from the community calling for a ban on street checks. In her address, organizer […]
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Youth members of street check report working group are fed up and have walked out
T rayvone Clayton, DeRico Symonds, Shevy Price and Kate Macdonald have walked out of the Wortley Street Check Action Working Group. Their statement, released Monday, explains: “During the third meeting, we became aware of the intended purpose of the working group,” it says. “This information we received counteracted with our beliefs and the communities’ beliefs […]
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Halifax announces Dan Kinsella as next regional police chief
T he long-awaited replacement for retired regional police chief Jean-Michel Blais will be Dan Kinsella. Currently the deputy chief of operations for the Hamilton Police Services, Kinsella doesn’t officially start until July 1. Residents will have to wait and see if he’s the future face of change in the Halifax police force. “He just rose […]
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Street check suspension buying time before regulation
Last week justice minister Mark Furey announced a moratorium on street checks “until further notice.” The decision followed Scot Wortley’s report for the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission that found Black men people are six times more likely to be street checked by police than white men and a strong recommendation from the Board of […]
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Police Commission makes recommendation to suspend street check practice
UPDATE: On Wednesday, April 17, justice minister Mark Furey directed police across NS to suspend street checks of both pedestrians and passengers in vehicles until further notice. The Halifax Board of Police Commissioners put its weight behind ending the practice of street checks at this week’s meeting following Scot Wortley and the NS Human Rights […]
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Street check report confirms what Black Haligonians have known for years
Time and time again the stories are told, and time and time again no change has come. For years, Nova Scotia’s Black community has been recounting stories of pain, frustration and fear in its interactions with police. Now, with the release of the Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission’s report on street checks, African Nova Scotians […]