Take action in solidarity with groups on the frontlines of the fight to end
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[[link removed]] Protesters march in Toronto, May 30, 2020 (© NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Content warning: This message includes references to racism and police violence
against Black people

Dear John,

In the two and a half weeks since George Floyd was killed by police in
Minneapolis, the names, the pain, the images and the violence associated with
anti-Black racism in the United States have been absolutely searing.

In the midst of a pandemic and an economic crisis that is disproportionately
impacting Black communities, the acts of police violence and the courageous acts
of resistance by Black activists and allies once again highlight that systemic
anti-Black racism is an entrenched, unrelenting human rights crisis – one that
Black communities have endured for generations.

Systemic anti-Black racism is a global crisis. It is a crisis in Canada. Former and current Canadian politicians and other public figures have insisted
that systemic anti-Black racism is not a concern here. While these statements
have been roundly rejected by prominent advocates across the country, they
reflect the beliefs of far too many.

Amnesty International unequivocally supports frontline groups and activists in
communities across Canada who work tirelessly to expose systemic racism and
demand justice for the growing number of Black people who have been wrongly
arrested, mistreated or killed by police in towns and cities in all parts of the
country.

Just two days after George Floyd’s death, Regis Korchinski-Paquet , a Black and Indigenous woman, plummeted to her death from the 24th floor of a
Toronto apartment building in the midst of an encounter with police.

Such incidents are not rare: in April, 26-year-old D’Andre Campbell was shot in his home by Peel police officers. In 2018, The Ontario Human Rights
Commission interim report on anti-Black racism in policing stated that Black people in Toronto are up to 20 times more likely to be shot dead by
police than white people .

Canada's dismal record is clear and irrefutable. The United Nations Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent has
raised alarms about systemic racism within Canada’s justice system, including
specific concerns on how police practices such as carding disproportionately
impacts Black people. Those concerns are also documented in reports from the
Ontario Human Rights Commission and Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission. Amnesty
International has called on governments and police forces across Canada to end
carding, street checks and racial profiling.

Many Black activists in Canada and the United States are pointing to a glimmer
of hope that the resulting waves of anger, outrage, courage and protest can and
will unleash necessary fundamental change – change that dismantles the systems of oppressive white supremacy that are the
source of anti-Black racism and have been its toxic fuel for centuries. Change
that is truly transformative. Change that will endure.

You can use your voice today to help push for real change. Below are five ways you can act in solidarity
[[link removed]] with groups on the frontlines of the fight to end systemic anti-Black racism.

Please visit our action page for full instructions and more resources >>
[[link removed]]

1. Send a message to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Minister of Diversity and
Inclusion Bardish Chagger , urging them to live up to their 2019 election promise to strengthen and
double the funding for "Building a Foundation for Change: Canada's Anti-Racism
Strategy".

2. Send a message to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Minister of Public Safety
Bill Blair , urging them to institute an absolute ban at federal level on practices of
carding, street checks and racial profiling by police and law enforcement
agencies, and to engage with their provincial and territorial counterparts
towards the goal of having such bans extend to all police and law enforcement
agencies in the country.

3. Ask your MP, MPP, MLA, and municipal councillors what they are prepared to do to address anti-Black racism in your community.

4. Learn from and provide active support to groups working to counter anti-Black
racism in your own community , and inform yourself about proposals being advanced to defund or substantially
transform police services.

5. Add your name to Amnesty’s call for justice in the case of George Floyd
[[link removed]] , and support the call for urgent reforms to address police accountability,
deadly force, racism and gun violence in the United States. Nearly one million
Amnesty supporters have signed the action.

We will also be sharing further resources and solidarity action opportunities
over the coming weeks so that you can help pursue justice and address anti-Black
racism in Canada.

As a member of the human rights community, you know that it will take more than
sympathy and outrage to end anti-Black racism. Thank you for taking action today
[[link removed]] on this urgent human rights crisis.

In hope & solidarity,

Alex Neve
Secretary General
Amnesty International Canada



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