Latest news with #AfricanCanadianExperience
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Yahoo
Black RCMP officer says he was demoted after raising concerns over training course
An African Nova Scotian RCMP staff sergeant who created anti-racism workshops for his employer says he was removed from his position after he raised concerns about intellectual property rights when the initiative he headed was going to be expanded. Craig Smith, a Mountie for nearly three decades, was described by the RCMP as a driving force behind its African Canadian Experience workshop, but the two sides are disputing who owns the course material. The dispute began in 2023. Smith now works for the RCMP in national recruitment. "This last year, really, has probably been the most stressful of my policing career," Smith said. Smith, also an author and historian, argues the workshop was created with material he produced outside of his RCMP job. "I believe that I was sidelined for no other reason than the fact that I said that I want to be compensated for my intellectual property rights," Smith said. Workshop evolved over a decade Smith has spent about half his career developing different versions of what is now known as the African Canadian Experience workshop. In 2006, Smith published his second book, You Had Better Be White By 6 a.m.: The African-Canadian Experience in the RCMP. Smith said he applied for what the RCMP calls secondary employment to take time off to write the book. He said his research for this book was adapted into the earliest version of the workshop. In 2008, two Black men were allegedly harassed by off-duty officers in Digby, N.S., leading to several recommendations about how RCMP could improve its relationship with Black residents, including a series of workshops for officers. "I developed and designed it and delivered it," Smith said. That version of the course was the African Nova Scotian Experience Workshop. He was asked in 2017 to expand the course from one day to five and to have a broader focus, which led to the formal creation of the African Canadian Experience workshop and unit that operated it, he said. He led that unit until the current dispute. The workshop took Smith all over the country and, as it became more popular, he said by 2022 the federal government wanted the RCMP to make it available to police services across the country. "So it was going to grow," he said. "I didn't think it was fair that my material be used without my permission and without me being compensated for it." Employers own employee's work, lawyer says Employees don't have intellectual property over the content they create as part of their job with the exception of contractors and third parties, according to an intellectual property lawyer. "Your employer will own all of the works that you create in the course of your employment," said Catherine Lovrics, head of trademark and copyright at Toronto-based legal firm Marks & Clerk. RCMP declined requests to interview Smith's supervisors. Assistant Commissioner Dennis Daley, Nova Scotia's commanding officer, said he's aware of Smith's concerns, but he can't discuss it because it is a personnel matter. "What I can tell you is that I am 100 per cent committed to the delivery of the African Canadian experience course and I look forward to continuing to educate our employees," Daley said. Smith said his employer has removed all his material from the current version of the course, which has been condensed from three to five days since he left. He said it's contradictory for an institution like the RCMP to say they want to address systemic racism and then do what they've done. Smith said he built up this course that garnered national attention, was attended by hundreds of officers across the country and gave racialized members a safe place to talk about their experience and "all of a sudden you want to dismantle it." "It makes no sense whatsoever," he said. For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here. (CBC) MORE TOP STORIES
CBC
10-03-2025
- CBC
Black RCMP officer says he was demoted after raising concerns over training course
An African Nova Scotian RCMP staff sergeant who created anti-racism workshops for his employer says he was removed from his position after he raised concerns about intellectual property rights when the initiative he headed was going to be expanded. Craig Smith, a Mountie for nearly three decades, was described by the RCMP as a driving force behind its African Canadian Experience workshop, but the two sides are disputing who owns the course material. The dispute began in 2023. Smith now works for the RCMP in national recruitment. "This last year, really, has probably been the most stressful of my policing career," Smith said. Smith, also an author and historian, argues the workshop was created with material he produced outside of his RCMP job. "I believe that I was sidelined for no other reason than the fact that I said that I want to be compensated for my intellectual property rights," Smith said. Workshop evolved over a decade Smith has spent about half his career developing different versions of what is now known as the African Canadian Experience workshop. In 2006, Smith published his second book, You Had Better Be White By 6 a.m.: The African-Canadian Experience in the RCMP. Smith said he applied for what the RCMP calls secondary employment to take time off to write the book. He said his research for this book was adapted into the earliest version of the workshop. In 2008, two Black men were allegedly harassed by off-duty officers in Digby, N.S., leading to several recommendations about how RCMP could improve its relationship with Black residents, including a series of workshops for officers. "I developed and designed it and delivered it," Smith said. That version of the course was the African Nova Scotian Experience Workshop. He was asked in 2017 to expand the course from one day to five and to have a broader focus, which led to the formal creation of the African Canadian Experience workshop and unit that operated it, he said. He led that unit until the current dispute. The workshop took Smith all over the country and, as it became more popular, he said by 2022 the federal government wanted the RCMP to make it available to police services across the country. "So it was going to grow," he said. "I didn't think it was fair that my material be used without my permission and without me being compensated for it." Employers own employee's work, lawyer says Employees don't have intellectual property over the content they create as part of their job with the exception of contractors and third parties, according to an intellectual property lawyer. "Your employer will own all of the works that you create in the course of your employment," said Catherine Lovrics, head of trademark and copyright at Toronto-based legal firm Marks & Clerk. RCMP declined requests to interview Smith's supervisors. Assistant Commissioner Dennis Daley, Nova Scotia's commanding officer, said he's aware of Smith's concerns, but he can't discuss it because it is a personnel matter. "What I can tell you is that I am 100 per cent committed to the delivery of the African Canadian experience course and I look forward to continuing to educate our employees," Daley said. Smith said his employer has removed all his material from the current version of the course, which has been condensed from three to five days since he left. He said it's contradictory for an institution like the RCMP to say they want to address systemic racism and then do what they've done. Smith said he built up this course that garnered national attention, was attended by hundreds of officers across the country and gave racialized members a safe place to talk about their experience and "all of a sudden you want to dismantle it." "It makes no sense whatsoever," he said.
CBC
28-02-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Nova Scotia RCMP said it will do better after apology for street checks. Will it be enough?
The Nova Scotia RCMP is implementing its plan to better serve Black people in the province with a major focus on educating police officers. More than a dozen officers and staff from different police services in Nova Scotia, as well as individuals who work within the justice system, took part in an African Canadian Experience workshop last month — the first since the RCMP's historic apology in September for its use of street checks. "Hopefully they leave here with a better and a stronger understanding and a willingness to want to assist or be an ally to the African Nova Scotian community," said Shelly Braithwaite, acting manager of the African Canadian Experience Unit in Nova Scotia. The workshop is a key objective of the Mounties' community-led action plan, according to Assistant Commissioner Dennis Daley, commanding officer of the Nova Scotia RCMP. At the apology in North Preston, N.S., Daley said his words were meaningless without action by the RCMP, and expressed "a genuine commitment to change." Workshop 'really opened my eyes' The workshop was created by a Nova Scotia officer in 2008 and is now being used across the country. The three-day course covers subjects such as the history of Black people in Nova Scotia, the Canadian education system and the Nova Scotia School for Colored Children, Braithwaite said. Participants learn the definition of terms like white privilege and unconscious bias and review case studies based on events police in Nova Scotia have experienced, she said. "We wanted people to come in and be in a safe environment and be able to ask any question that they wanted," Braithwaite said. The RCMP's plan states there will be three workshops a year with a total of about 60 participants. The workshops are open to members of police departments in Nova Scotia. "It kind of really opened my eyes," said Insp. Bill Turner, with Cape Breton Regional Police. Staff Sgt. Lynden Morrison, acting inspector of the RCMP's Halifax detachment, agreed with Turner. He said the course made him contemplate things he's never had to think about before. "I thought I was reasonably educated on the matter," he said. But now, he said, he's asking himself if he's done enough to make sure his workplace is inclusive and everyone has the same opportunities. Morrison said he doesn't believe there are overtly racist police officers in Nova Scotia, but he's now aware of more nuanced microaggressions that can still be very harmful. "We have to call each other out on that and say it's not acceptable," he said. 'If police want to be an ally,' they should play proactive role The RCMP's community action plan also aims to increase recruitment and retention of Black officers and become more involved in the communities they serve. Building relationships with residents and getting out into communities and creating more opportunities for residents to engage with officers and staff are priorities, Daley said. The action plan states detachment commanders must meet with leaders in African Nova Scotian communities at least twice a year. "I have the support of my detachment commanders getting out there, meeting their community members, attending their events, listening to their issues," Daley said in an interview. Robert Wright, an African Nova Scotian sociologist, suggests the RCMP can establish trust with Black communities by helping address those issues. Wright, a former executive director of the African Nova Scotian Justice Institute, said police in North America have historically been responsible for oppressing Black and racialized communities, resulting in an inherent distrust of authorities. Police can change that by using their vantage point and resources to identify solutions to issues like poverty, housing and systemic racism, he said. "I think that if police want to be an ally to the Black community, then we would see policing agencies advocating on behalf of the Black community to address those problems." Wright said. Leadership is ultimately responsible for change, Wright said, but he doesn't have a lot of confidence in the RCMP after former commissioner Brenda Lucki denied there was systemic racism within the organization. But Daley said he's dedicated to making change and will continue to welcome input from people like Wright. "I'm very open to those discussions because I do think public safety can be delivered in a different manner," Daley said.
