Summary of Proposal

Statistics Canada’s detailed analyses of the perceptions and self-reported experiences of diverse populations in Canada submit that the Black and Indigenous (BIPOC) populations are twice as likely to mistrust police. Particularly, BIPOC youths experience brutality, stereotyping and various other forms of discrimination at the hands of police officers. While this is a reality throughout the country, specific discriminatory practices from police officers have been experienced in several regions, such as the Canadian Prairies. Saskatchewan, a province on the prairie, has played a particularly negative role in Canadian history concerning policing and surveillance. Police brutality and discrimination have been exhibited repeatedly. One protocol has been the infamous Starlight tour, which involved picking up Indigenous men, women, and boys, then leaving them miles outside the city on sub-zero winter nights, leading to Saskatoon's freezing deaths. Police were also involved in the mishandled cases of many Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MWIW). Death cases are also directly linked to police brutality, racial discrimination and negligence in Black communities. These experiences, among others, are antithetical to the mission and vision of many police services in the country, which is to serve and protect. Although policing alone cannot solve public safety concerns and complex social issues, policing plays a significant role in how citizens from BIPOC communities and cultures are perceived. Little has been reported about racialized youths’ perceptions of the police in Saskatchewan. This creative project fills that gap, exploring BIPOC youths’ experiences and perceptions of policing in Saskathewan and raising community voices through storytelling and audio drama. These are important creative and social tools that can heal existing wounds in our community and repair relationships with communities demanding equity around the province. This project asks the following questions:

1)    What are the experiences and perceptions of BIPOC youth on policing in Saskatchewan?

2)    In what ways can the policing experiences and perceptions of immigrant BlPoC youth create space for dialogue on policing in Saskatchewan?

3)    How might storytelling and audio drama animate discourse around race relations, policing, and equity in Saskatchewan?

“Policing Saskatchewan: BIPOC Youths Speak Out” is part of a larger program of innovative projects involving BIPOC youth that will contribute to the discourse around policing, social justice, and equity in Saskatchewan. 

Contributions to Knowledge

“Policing in Saskatchewan: BIPOC Youths Speak Out” aims to offer fresh insight into policing through the lens of social justice, equity and diversity, an undertaking which can revolutionize the Canadian justice system (Samuels-Wortley 2021). By using audio drama, the project will facilitate a cooperative experience and knowledge sharing and amplify the voices of BIPOC youths on ways to address inequities within the justice system in the province of Saskatchewan. It is crucial, in coming to the work, to consider the inextricable political and social implications of vocality (Cahill and Hamel 2022) and its relations to self-identity. Coming to the work through an ethnographic lens allows for greater sensitivity to the social and cultural contexts of the participating youth. The sonic space created for the participants through the voicework offered at the workshops and the radio drama performance may facilitate more fluid dialogue and an opportunity for potential social-political change. In essence, police officers, RCMP constables, police recruits, BIPOC, Service Provider Organizations (SPOs), and cultural organizations may find the knowledge instrumental in the reckoning process within which the Canadian Policing system currently finds itself. To this end, we will share results directly with the arts councils of the Canadian Association of Police Governance (CAPG), Saskatchewan Police Commission, Regina Police Service, Saskatoon Police Service, Saskatchewan Board of Police Commissioners, the Saskatchewan Federation of Police Officers, RCMP Academy, and Sask Police College; air the audio drama across different open access platforms; and submit articles to scholarly and professional journals, and present at different conferences.

Social Benefits

This creative project will engage a diverse BIPOC youth population, artists and police officers. Police officers, policymakers and leaders within the justice system will find the knowledge instrumental in their mandate to serve and protect the people of Saskatchewan. The findings will be a resource for BIPOC youths, who will learn from the experiences of their colleagues. The knowledge will be useful for multicultural and antiracist organizations such as Saskatoon Open Door, Regina Open Door, Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan and Saskatchewan Intercultural Association, etc., in their community engagement work of antiracism, equity and diversity. 

Expected Outcomes

Summary of Expected Societal Outcomes

This project will engage a diverse BIPOC youth population, artists and police officers. Police officers, policymakers and leaders within the justice system will find the knowledge instrumental in their mandate to serve and protect the people of Saskatchewan. The findings will be a resource for BIPOC youths, who will learn from the experiences of their colleagues. The knowledge will be useful for multicultural and antiracist organizations such as Saskatoon Open Door, Regina Open Door, RCMP Heritage Centre Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan and Saskatchewan Intercultural Association, etc., in their community engagement work of antiracism, equity and diversity. Further, it will facilitate the development of antiracist strategies that address exclusionary and harmful colonial practices in the policing system, and share the experiences of BIPOC youth as a step towards healing and collective envisioning of a preferred future.

Summary of Benefits to Potential Target Audience

For the target audience, this project has the potential to support police service to advance more inclusive strategies regarding equity and representation; better equip the justice system to prepare ways to support BIPOC communities in their healing journey and strengthen the advocacy endeavours of organizations regarding race relations, racism and the relationship between police and communities. In essence, police officers, RCMP constables, police recruits, BIPOC, Service Provider Organizations (SPOs), and cultural organizations may find the knowledge instrumental in the reckoning process within which the Canadian Policing system currently finds itself. Results will be shared directly with the Canadian Association of Police Governance (CAPG), Saskatchewan Police Commission, Regina Police Service, Saskatoon Police Service, Saskatchewan Board of Police Commissioners, the Saskatchewan Federation of Police Officers, RCMP Academy, and Sask Police College; and the general public.