Ferguson, and why “at least things aren’t as bad here” isn’t good enough
On Monday morning, a Missouri grand jury voted not to indict officer Darren Wilson for the killing of Michael Brown. On Tuesday, a thousand protesters assembled across from the U.S. Consulate on University Avenue, in solidarity with the angered residents of Ferguson. Far from the confusion and disorder that marred Occupy Toronto, this protest was well-organized, concise and topical. Young people from all over the city showed up at six o’clock with a simple message: black lives matter. With bullhorns and chants, they expressed sympathetic grief, keeping a respectful distance from the embassy. As far as protests go, it was on the polite side of collective anger.
It would be gratifying to call Tuesday’s protest the characteristic Canadian response to racial strife—but it wasn’t. A more telling response came the following morning, in the form of Joe Warmington’s Sun column denying the seriousness, if not the very existence, of racialized conflict in Toronto:
There was [sic] some good slogans like “No Justice, No peace” or “Respect our existence or expect resistance.” One of the organizers said: “I don’t want to live in a world where some lives matter and some lives don’t.”
These slogans and sayings may be accurate in other parts of the world, but not here. No one is suggesting it’s perfect but we have what many jurisdictions seeking racial harmony dream about.
The crowd here was not all black and the police officers on hand weren’t all white.
They were all Torontonians.
This is how we do conversations on race in Canada: give a polite nod to the possibility that racism exists here, then compare ourselves favourably to countries where it can be measured by the volume of blood spilled. Without the presence of bodies left rotting in the sun, we drown all other critiques in self-congratulatory nationalism, and declare ourselves a racial utopia. A country safely colour-blind, where anyone can make it with the right amounts of ambition and hard work. We begin every discussion on racism with the incantation that “at least things aren’t as bad here as they are in the States,” as if to ward off the rancid spectre of Jim Crow—as if our absence of black bodies, murdered at the hands of white men, is definitive evidence of the best possible policing and race relations.
When we make this comparison, we narrow the definitions of racism to the kind we’re comfortable confronting head-on. Our shared values, we tell ourselves, leave us no room to tolerate hatred, violent oppression and racial slurs. However, by keeping the focus there, we let slip the other forms of racism that damn us. “Not as bad here” asks black Canadians to keep quiet, or risk looking ungrateful in the face of the real oppression south of the border. It asks us to accept outrageously high unemployment rates among black youth. It asks us to look the other way when black Torontonians are stopped by police at up to 17 times the rate of other groups, and to remain silent about the near-absence of black voices in boardrooms, City Hall, Queen’s Park and Parliament. Sure, we’re not perfect, but at least unarmed black men aren’t liable to be beaten and framed by police, except when they are.
The organizers of Black Lives Matter did a fine job of keeping the event safe and the message positive, but they still caught a sharp rebuke from both Warmington and Canadian media at large for propagating their own brand of racism. Among other requests, non-black participants were asked not to “take up space” in the protest. Akio Maroon, one of the organizers, put it succinctly: “We need to be able to speak with our own voices.” On Newstalk 1010, Christie Blatchford called this request “petty”; AM640’s John Oakley labeled it “segregation”; Warmington said it was “embarrassing.” The CBC went so far as to seek out white protesters and ask how they felt about being silenced. White Canadians are so comfortable setting the rules for the conversation on racism, so attached to feeling comfortable and exculpated when it happens, that even a polite request to stop dominating the conversation is met with wide-eyed disbelief.
As much as Canadians would like to believe we’re all in this together, the facts don’t bear that out. It isn’t typically white children who are hemmed up by police on the way home from school—just like it isn’t typically white teenagers who fret about filling in their home addresses on job applications, or white mothers who fear learning that their sons have been gunned down by police during a traffic stop. And when black Canadians try to discuss the uneven social privileges that explain some of these realities, they’re treated as if they’re making things up out of whole cloth. The daily lived experience of black Canadians, one that asks them to pay a social tax in every form of systemic and oppressive racism short of their bodies bleeding in the street, illustrates the absurdity of comparing ourselves to the U.S.
Of course we aren’t the same. In one way, we’re worse. At least they’re allowed to talk about it.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/city/ferguson-michael-brown-canadian-response/&title=Ferguson, and why “at least things aren’t as bad here” isn’t good enough&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/20141128-domise-ferguson-624x395.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_300784" align="aligncenter" width="656"] The memorial at the location where Michael Brown was killed in Ferguson, photographed earlier this month. (Image: Scott Olson/Getty)[/caption]
On Monday morning, a Missouri grand jury voted not to indict officer Darren Wilson for the killing of Michael Brown. On Tuesday, a thousand protesters assembled across from the U.S. Consulate on University Avenue, in solidarity with the angered residents of Ferguson. Far from the confusion and disorder that marred Occupy Toronto, this protest was well-organized, concise and topical. Young people from all over the city showed up at six o’clock with a simple message: black lives matter. With bullhorns and chants, they expressed sympathetic grief, keeping a respectful distance from the embassy. As far as protests go, it was on the polite side of collective anger.
It would be gratifying to call Tuesday’s protest the characteristic Canadian response to racial strife—but it wasn’t. A more telling response came the following morning, in the form of Joe Warmington’s Sun column denying the seriousness, if not the very existence, of racialized conflict in Toronto:
There was [sic] some good slogans like "No Justice, No peace" or "Respect our existence or expect resistance." One of the organizers said: "I don't want to live in a world where some lives matter and some lives don't."
These slogans and sayings may be accurate in other parts of the world, but not here. No one is suggesting it's perfect but we have what many jurisdictions seeking racial harmony dream about.
The crowd here was not all black and the police officers on hand weren't all white.
They were all Torontonians.
This is how we do conversations on race in Canada: give a polite nod to the possibility that racism exists here, then compare ourselves favourably to countries where it can be measured by the volume of blood spilled. Without the presence of bodies left rotting in the sun, we drown all other critiques in self-congratulatory nationalism, and declare ourselves a racial utopia. A country safely colour-blind, where anyone can make it with the right amounts of ambition and hard work. We begin every discussion on racism with the incantation that “at least things aren’t as bad here as they are in the States,” as if to ward off the rancid spectre of Jim Crow—as if our absence of black bodies, murdered at the hands of white men, is definitive evidence of the best possible policing and race relations.
When we make this comparison, we narrow the definitions of racism to the kind we’re comfortable confronting head-on. Our shared values, we tell ourselves, leave us no room to tolerate hatred, violent oppression and racial slurs. However, by keeping the focus there, we let slip the other forms of racism that damn us. “Not as bad here” asks black Canadians to keep quiet, or risk looking ungrateful in the face of the real oppression south of the border. It asks us to accept outrageously high unemployment rates among black youth. It asks us to look the other way when black Torontonians are stopped by police at up to 17 times the rate of other groups, and to remain silent about the near-absence of black voices in boardrooms, City Hall, Queen's Park and Parliament. Sure, we’re not perfect, but at least unarmed black men aren’t liable to be beaten and framed by police, except when they are.
The organizers of Black Lives Matter did a fine job of keeping the event safe and the message positive, but they still caught a sharp rebuke from both Warmington and Canadian media at large for propagating their own brand of racism. Among other requests, non-black participants were asked not to “take up space” in the protest. Akio Maroon, one of the organizers, put it succinctly: “We need to be able to speak with our own voices.” On Newstalk 1010, Christie Blatchford called this request “petty”; AM640’s John Oakley labeled it “segregation”; Warmington said it was “embarrassing.” The CBC went so far as to seek out white protesters and ask how they felt about being silenced. White Canadians are so comfortable setting the rules for the conversation on racism, so attached to feeling comfortable and exculpated when it happens, that even a polite request to stop dominating the conversation is met with wide-eyed disbelief.
As much as Canadians would like to believe we’re all in this together, the facts don’t bear that out. It isn’t typically white children who are hemmed up by police on the way home from school—just like it isn't typically white teenagers who fret about filling in their home addresses on job applications, or white mothers who fear learning that their sons have been gunned down by police during a traffic stop. And when black Canadians try to discuss the uneven social privileges that explain some of these realities, they're treated as if they’re making things up out of whole cloth. The daily lived experience of black Canadians, one that asks them to pay a social tax in every form of systemic and oppressive racism short of their bodies bleeding in the street, illustrates the absurdity of comparing ourselves to the U.S.
Of course we aren't the same. In one way, we’re worse. At least they’re allowed to talk about it.){kind=link}
“It isn’t typically white children who are hemmed up by police on the way home from school”
As long as a disproportionate amount of violent crime continues to be committed by black youth, a disproportionate amount of black ‘children’ will be ‘hemmed up by police on the way home from school’ versus white kids. Anything else would just be irresponsible to the citizens who rely on the police for their safety.
And this is where it starts – asshole sites like this trying to make a big deal out of nothing. Racism is a word that shouldn’t even exist. Why don’t you do something positive instead of trying to point out differences in things to stir up a huge pot of shit? Media has become worse than what we used to think of lawyers. Nothing but blood-sucking, cadaver-eating low life’s who do nothing but try to dig up dirty laundry.
We were told this week that two wrongs make a right. Michael Brown was only 18 years old. He was no saint. He disobeyed a Police Officer. He struck a Police Officer. He broke the law and he should have been punished, not murdered. He should have been given a chance to reform himself through the proper channels of a justice system we’re supposed to trust. Instead, he was given a death sentence in the middle of the street. Michael will never see a day in court for his wrongs- and neither will Officer Darren Wilson for his. I was compelled to create a portrait of Michael in memoriam at http://dregstudiosart.blogspot.com/2014/11/michael-browns-shoes.html to stand in solidarity with the people of Ferguson and families who’ve lost their children to sentences passed by cops in the streets.
What a load of rubbish. Look up the definition of ‘murder’: the unlawful premeditated killing of a person. An independent grand jury thoroughly examined witness testimony and forensic evidence and decided that despite all the evidence presented and reviewed, there wasn’t enough evidence of wrongdoing on Wilson’s part to even charge him with a crime. They determined he acted lawfully. Ipso facto, your use of the word ‘murder’ to describe Wilson’s actions is both inflammatory and irresponsible (possibly libelous too.) What are YOU basing your accusation on? Rumour? Innuendo? Unsubstantiated claims in media? You picked the wrong horse to ride here. Go find a cop that ACTUALLY murdered someone instead of inflaming racism and interracial tensions by blindly ‘standing in solidarity’ with other stupid people who are looting, pillaging, and shamefully attacking a man who saved himself from being killed by a violent hoodlum who attacked a police officer.
And that would be a basic glossing over the systemic contributions to why black youth are disproportionately involved in violent crimes. So how about an honest convo on those complex societal issues? Or are you implying that black youth are predisposed to violent actions?
Big deal out of nothing…says the privileged white person.
No one wants to have that conversation which involves kids growing up with no fathers or parents,due to people having kids that shouldn’t in the first place.There’s no colour limitation on those actions,but in this city the majority of those that fit that description happen to be black.Jamaican black if you really want to get technical.
Yeh real privileged. I make minimum wage, my life is shit. Got a speeding ticket on the way to work, so my earnings today will pay that. Cop didn’t cut me any breaks because of my skin. Sick of seeing the race card turned into a ‘race, chip on your shoulder’. I also don’t hear my boss (who is black if it really matters) complaining about life treating him unfairly.
Any more comments big mouth???
Independent grand jury…that would indict for open trial a ham sandwich, but not a man that took a black life. Led by a prosecutor that has a swirl of suspicion over his objectivity AND who works with the same police he was charged to investigate.
Your implication of an open and transparent process is laughable.
I’d welcome that convo. Because it will connect dots to the deeper societal issues. If we have the courage to follow that trail.
Yep. Go do some historical homework. If you have the courage.
Sadly no politician will address those issues for fear of being called racist or classist. Easier to say ‘we need money for school breakfasts’ than to educate a parent that having an egg to give your child in the morning costs about 12 cents. Focusing on family and education,parents staying together, educating young girls that the key to self worth is not having someone’s baby…or even older people having kids they can’t afford is not a sexy agenda that wins elections…
How about we look at and fix the present and the future instead of all the crying about the past. We can’t change the past, but we can change the present and future.
Believe me, I’m not completely oblivious here, and I really hate reading about anybody getting killed by anybody, but screaming and yelling about something we can’t change just causes more tension and hate. If there are racist cops out there I would be the first in line to beat their ass; and abuse of power is also something that should be zero-tolerance. THAT is where we have to start. Put trust back into the equation, because it is completely gone in 2014.
The thug you are glorifying in your artwork attacked a police officer (after committing a violent robbery.) There are witnesses to this. Black witnesses. There are witnesses (black witnesses) who saw your saintly criminal charging at the cop when he got blown off the face of the earth for his own actions. The forensic evidence supports and validates this. The troublemakers that started most of the violence by falsely claiming that the thug had his hands up when he was shot have all either recanted or been completely discredited. It must be tough for you to have put your faith in fraudulent accusations only to learn that you were completely wrong. Shake your head.
Our systems provide free health care. Free education. The opportunity for people to get and hold jobs. Anyone. Not just whiteys. Blacks can and do make great lives for themselves. I know many. No one forces a black kid to join a gang instead of avoiding a life of violence, except perhaps the culture of the ghetto and the black community itself. Change from within. No one is stopping black youth from getting a job at McDonalds and saving their minimum wages so they can get a university education. There are many supplemental financing programs, bursaries, etc. to help with that. It’s just not as sexy to them and they can’t afford cars or gold chains on minimum wage so they choose to sling rock for the $$. And then they end up shooting each other. That’s the problem. The systemic issues have largely been dealt with. Now it’s up to the black community to help themselves instead of focusing on the big chips on their shoulder.
I think you should take a good look at what you have written here. Your words are extremely offensive and shrug off a serious political movement taking place. Open your eyes and try to put yourself in the shoes of a black man or woman. This display of ignorance is EXACTLY why we need to open up discussions about differences in how black people are treated and viewed in society. I would encourage you to do some research on white privilege and how you are afforded a certain treatment because of the colour of your skin. I feel so sorry for you that you can’t empathize in this situation. Here is a good article for you to check out: https://www.isr.umich.edu/home/diversity/resources/white-privilege.pdf
This is a bigger issue than just police brutality. This is a racial issue and it’s important that this is made known and discussed. Acting like it’s not an issue isn’t going to fix that oppression is a serious issue facing black people. You’re right, we can’t change the past but that’s not what this is even about! The discussion is around what is happening RIGHT NOW all throughout North America. Have you considered that maybe you just don’t understand it because you are white and don’t see it first hand? Have you considered that your opinions may be biased because of your upbringing. Why are you fighting this if racism doesn’t exist?
Why is everybody in here assuming I’m white? I have left my skin colour out of this on purpose. Now I’m being profiled by what YOU assume I am or am not. Do we see what the REAL problem is now? THAT is what we have to overcome. Thanks for proving my point exactly.
Now that I’ve made that point I’m getting out of here. I can talk all night long, but apparently it’s going to fall on deaf ears – I know when the audience has an agenda of their own. Peace be with everybody, have a good weekend. Bye.
Again, read above. I am far from being a white kid with the world at my doorstep. Thank you for profiling though and showing me what the real problem is – it’s people who are stubborn and too pig-headed to budge a millimeter. Also, as mentioned above – I’m out of this chain. Goodbye,
I hope you enjoy the article I posted :).
Sigh, another tough day of ignoring racism. Must be exhausting to fight with so many pig heads that want to improve the lives of black children and youth by creating awareness and advocating for those that care about. We’re just so gosh darn relentless!
What Canada is experencing is not an advanced state of racial equality but the beginning state of racial inequality. America and it’s racialized and extremely violent socio-political environment – manifesting itself in systemically condoned murder – began with “17x the police stop” rate, disproportionate unemployment, and a conspicuous absence of representation. The key critical thought to keep in mind, then, is all these “relatively pat-yourself-on-the-shoulder” statistics have already happened in the States. Except they didn’t espouse these stats as progress but deride them as precursors. What we have, unfortunately, is Canada following in the footsteps of the US, not leading them. High unemployment, income disparity, and visual systemic police discrimination are not reason to celebrate our advanced state of society but reason to question what happens next. It’s a terribly quick slide into rhetoric of equality and lived realities of oppression. It’s time to step back and question the direction we are headed in, not applaud the position we have tentatively occupied (briefly, mind you).
Hey, 1890 called, it wants its colonial theory back, please.
No, what you need to ask yourself is why are black Canadian youth choosing a life of crime, gangs and violence (in ways trying to imitate their American counterparts) as opposed to taking advantage of the plethora of equal opportunities Canada has to offer? The issues you and the author listed such as, high unemployment and poverty are issues which all immigrants face (yes even the white ones) and does not qualify as a race specific problem. Further, contrary to any beliefs you and the author may have, the majority of blacks in Canada are voluntary immigrants who migrated to Canada from the Caribbean/Africa during the late 60’s to early 90’s. Hence, Canadian blacks never faced any systematic racial oppression laws or forced segregation (does Canadian natives come to mind?) which happened in the US, let alone hundreds of years of slavery (and yes I am aware of the small representation of African-Americans in Nova Scotia). Has there been injustices committed against blacks in Canada? Yes. Has there been injustices committed against whites and Asians? Yes. However, can they be compared to what African-Americans face and have faced because of a few outlier events? Absolutely not. This is why it took an American event to spark a protest in Canada. If the people protesting were really concerned about Canadian oppression they would be protesting for the Natives who face these injustices on a day to day basis. The point I am trying to make is, instead of complaining about the higher possibility of being carded/pulled over, learn to take responsibility for yourself and your own community and stop complaining when something happens in a different country. Realize you (parents, grandparents) immigrated to a country where injustices are commited against its indegnious peoples every single day.
Yes.
It’s called “reality”. Where have you been living, in a cave?
Tough talk from “Guest.”
Kudos to Andray for writing such an honest brave piece. On the other hand I am utterly disgusted that someone would use my friend’s great grandfather (and Canadian icon) as a pen name to write such vile and ugly racist comments. If Conn were alive today he would not be amused.
Hello. You make minimum wage and have a crappy life because you’re ignorant, uneducated (I’m guessing) and classless. Sucks to be you.
Hope you’re not stereotyping. This doesn’t describe me at all, nor the majority of blacks in this country.
please clarify what you are referring to,as there is zero racism in any posted comments, only condemnation of bad behaviour.
Really? The “Jamaican black” profiling comment is racist and repugnant.
Why not post your real name or are you (obviously) too cowardly?
Thank you Forrest Bivens for fighting the good fight in this racist and repugnant cyber arena. Conn Smythe (really?), Rhuled Bi Reeson and the less cowardly Zach Swan (by posting his real name) have made it a disheartening and eye opening Canadian dialogue.
Which part doesn’t describe you at all? Are you saying you’re not one of the black youth who forrestbivens (whilst advertising his artwork) believes are disproportionately involved in crime because they’re victims of some imaginary systemic constraints that force them to take up arms to shoot other blacks and fight police officers? Well that was my point – no one is forced into a life of crime. Are you one of the black people that I refer to who “make great lives for themselves” and are NOT forced into a life of crime and attacking police officers by some imaginary systemic issues? My guess is, probably yes, and perhaps we’d all be better off if that became a stereotype. No, we’re here because we’re talking about a (relatively small number of) inner city gang bangers/troublemakers who choose a life of crime instead of doing what other poor and immigrant groups have done for generations: work hard and make a better life for yourself and your descendants, so if that doesn’t describe you at all, then thank goodness. And I never suggested that this category of individual was characteristic of the majority of blacks in this country. The point is, we all have opportunity to make something of ourselves, or to use some long past issue of ‘systemic discrimination’ as a crutch to justify laziness or criminal behaviour. It’s time for that to stop and the best way to effect that change, is from within those communities.
nothing racist and repugnant about stating facts from the crime stats. like most leftys, you’re more interested in crying ‘racism’ than solving the problems of that community.
…and I see my original comment was removed. Way to go, Toronto Life, for being part of the problem and stifling legitimate discourse. Buh-bye.
If there is a “genetic predisposition”, then there is genetic (i.e., scientific) evidence. Please point us towards a primary source for this claim. Otherwise, you’re just making shit up that fits your own opinion.
Everything this dude knows about black people, he learned from 90s rap songs. Pathetic.
Here is a link citing studies that on average, black men have 15% higher testosterone levels than white men:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/3455741
This has led to high rates of prostate cancer among black men since high testosterone levels are a contributing factor to this type of cancer. This is a well know medical fact.
And you don’t need to read a medical website to figure this out: on the average, black men are more muscular, physically bigger and more athletic than men of other ethnicities. These physical characteristics are associated with higher levels of testosterone.
And of course, high testosterone leads to (quoting a article in the NY Times) “an unusually early involvement with sex and drug use and to certain violent crimes, like particularly vicious rapes”:
http://www.nytimes.com/1990/07/17/science/aggression-in-men-hormone-levels-are-a-key.html
So unfortunately, black men do in fact have a greater tendency towards (to say this gently) “anti-social” behaviour for genetic reasons.
Therefore, in my view, it’s not fair to blame black male violence on black males themselves because they themselves are victims of something they cannot control.
Here’s a recent news story about two black kids (a 12 year old and 14 year old) attempting to steal a white 25 year olds baby in Scarborough. They sure start young don’t they?
http://globalnews.ca/news/1709990/toronto-mom-attacked-after-youths-allegedly-tried-to-snatch-her-baby/
That’s not how science works. Show me the direct–not speculative, not correlation = causation, not your personal opinion of how X trait causes Y behaviour– in ALL black males, not just the ones you want to crap on. The cancer link is irrelevant to the discussion. High T is associated with higher rates of prostate cancer, therefore higher T causes higher rates of violent behaviour? Logic fail. Also note that a NY Times article is not a primary source.
P.S. There are other cultures besides the U.S. that have black males and police…and they don’t hew to your pet hypothesis! A logical person would thus conclude that it sounds like a social/cultural/political issue and not a biological one. Sorry for your lots…though your emotional ranting IS amusing.
Interesting anecdote about two kids…not really evidence that ALL kids/all black kids do the same though, is it? Two kids with green eyes stole my grandma’s Christmas decorations…I guess we have to vilify all kids with green eyes now. ::rolleyes::
Honestly, it sounds like you’ve made up your mind about how you feel about black people so there’s no point in talking sense.
The main point the protest in the U.S. is not about crime. It is about racism. It is that the majority of the people placed in jails or killed are young black men. Black people are not refuting the criminal aspects of some of their people’ behaviour. We are refuting that there is a disproportionate number of our people criminalized when whites who are guilty of the same crimes or worse get more lenient treatment by societal and the justice systems. That’s what pisses us off.
Long past issue of ‘systemic discrimination’? A lot of Americans believe that BS and are suffering the consequences now. I agree with some of your points but this one says a lot. Wake up! The wicked don’t sleep. They’re just pretending.
“There are other cultures besides the U.S. that have black males and police…and they don’t hew to your pet hypothesis!”
If the cause of black criminality was social & cultural, then why do black men in Canada cause such a disproportionate amount of violent crime? Unlike the United States, Canada doesn’t have a history of African slavery or Jim Crow, etc., but there are higher incidents of criminality among black men nevertheless.
Most blacks in Canada come from the Caribbean where they speak and are educated in English. So it’s not like they have any disadvantages in terms of familiarity with language and culture.
In fact, name me ONE country where black males DON’T cause a disproportionate amount of crime in that society.
What I am suggesting is that black males cannot be fully blamed for their actions because I believe that the cause for their antisocial behaviour is genetic. If this is officially recognized by society, they can receive treatment from the state. For example, they can be offered subsidies for medication to decrease their testosterone levels.
Willful blindness among members of the black community will not solve the problem. I mean really, how much evidence do you need before you’ll admit that there’s a problem in your community?
Here’s a recent example of black male criminality from Toronto -fresh off the presses. Black guy tries to mug a steakhouse restaurant owner on Elm Street, who promptly kicks the black dude’s ass:
http://news.nationalpost.com/2014/12/23/toronto-restauranteur-arron-barberian-lives-up-to-his-name-as-he-pummels-mugger-in-video/
And here’s the one that’s been making headlines in NYC, where a black guy killed two (NON-WHITE police officers):
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/21/nyregion/two-police-officers-shot-in-their-patrol-car-in-brooklyn.html?_r=0