Plante vows to keep fighting racism in light of profiling decision

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Faced with a Superior Court ruling that found racial profiling is a systemic problem among the city’s police officers, Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is recommitted to fighting racism and discrimination.

Speaking to reporters on the issue Wednesday, Plante however stopped short of saying if the city will appeal the judgment ordering it to pay damages to victims of racial profiling.

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The mayor instead said the city’s lawyers will need time to analyze the ruling and understand its implications.

“We take it very seriously,” Plante said, adding that the city has been proactive in trying to root out systemic racism. “We strongly believe a city must be exempt of all discrimination and racism.”

In her decision on the class-action lawsuit brought against the city, Justice Dominique Poulin ruled Tuesday the city is responsible for the profiling committed by its police officers and should pay out damages to victims.

The judge heard testimony from several people in the civil trial last year, including Plante and the city’s police chief, Fady Dagher.

On Wednesday, Plante said Dagher’s commitment to fighting racial profiling is one of the reasons she believed he was the right person for the job when named to the role in 2022.

“It’s something he said right away, and we both agree on it,” Plante said.

In a news release issued Wednesday, the Ligue des droits et libertés applauded the court’s decision, saying it hopes the ruling will help bring an “end to discriminatory police practices.”

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The human rights group pointed to how an independent report on police checks in Montreal made public last summer called on the police department to implement a moratorium on street checks.

Researchers had looked at 2021 data and found that Indigenous Montrealers were six times more likely to be stopped than were white people in the city. The data showed Black and Arabic people were also much more likely to be subject to street checks.

Dagher rejected the call for a moratorium at the time, arguing it would amount to a symbolic gesture and that he preferred to take “constant small steps” to address racial profiling.

In light of the ruling, the Ligue des droits et libertés is once again calling on the city to ban the practice “for the sake of human rights.”

The case was brought against the city by the Black Coalition of Quebec and lead plaintiff Alexandre Lamontagne, a Black security guard who alleged that Montreal police officers forcibly arrested him without cause.

The judge awarded $5,000 in damages to Lamontagne as well as either $5,000 or $2,500 to other profiling victims.

Reacting after the decision was issued, the coalition said it reflects the reality that many racialized people face in their interactions with police.

“What we want is the victims to be paid damages, but we also want it to cease,” said Max Stanley Bazin, the coalition’s president.

“Has the city done something to address (racial profiling) in the meantime? The answer is yes,” he added. “Is it sufficient? The answer is no.”

The Gazette’s Jason Magder contributed to this report.

jfeith@postmedia.com

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