“Safe Streets, Safe Community”

Community Safety Forum January 15, 2013 – Thunder Bay Community Auditorium

BACKGROUND The “Safe Streets, Safe Community” Community Safety Forum was attended by over 200 representatives of

Aboriginal organizations, municipal politics, law enforcement, and the general public. The need for cooperation in

striving toward a safer community was stressed by the guest speakers, and members of the audience were asked

to put forth possible steps toward concrete improvements in public safety. The purpose of the forum was to begin

meaningful dialogue on the topic of community safety and encourage all stakeholders to become actively engaged

in efforts to make Thunder Bay safer for all of its citizens.

SUMMARY OF SPEAKERS Chief Peter Collins, Fort William First Nation

A major safety concern in Thunder Bay, especially as of late, is the safety of women and children. Respect is

critically important to achieving community safety, and recognizing that all citizens, regardless of race are looking

for the same things for their children and family. All citizens are looking to ensure that their children are safe and

secure. To achieve safety and security, the importance of building relationships cannot be understated. When I

moved to Thunder Bay, I encountered people who did not like me because of who I was, but some of those people

are now like brothers to me, and uncles to my children. People may come with a lot of preconceived notions and

prejudices, but it is important to remember that they can change. It is also important that the public and law

enforcement are on the same page so that everyone is aware of the steps being taken to move forward.

Mayor Keith Hobbs, City of Thunder Bay

When I ran for mayor, I ran on a safe community platform and to date it has been a failure. However, we learn as

we go. We have talked about relocating DFC with a safe residence, we as leaders must make sure that happens. As

mayor, I want to protect all of my citizens; crime is crime and we must have everything out on the table or it will

not be addressed. I want to see the commitment from all parties to put everything on the table.

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Grand Chief Harvey Yesno, Nishnawbe Aski Nation

Students from across the North have no fear of walking at night in their home communities. This can present a

danger when moving to an urban centre as students may not know to be vigilant and careful. For some students,

high school is the first time they have left their home community, and therefore they do not know what to expect. If

we are to target the issues of community safety and racism, we must target it everywhere in order to stop small

ideas from becoming problems. People will always have extreme ideas, but it is up to us to try and prevent

anything resulting from their ideas. It is important that the law is upheld as it is stated.

Deputy Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler, Nishnawbe Aski Nation

The current relationship between police and the First Nations community is broken. A troubling pattern has

emerged where parents from remote communities are pulling their children from urban high schools for fear of

their safety. Stories like this make our work more urgent. The dialogue that we have must be brutally honest and

all concerns must be on the table. This is necessary to rebuild a trust between police and First Nations residents.

An email has been set up for those who did not get a chance to speak at the forum. The email is

safetyforum@nan.on.ca

J.P. Levesque, Chief of Police, Thunder Bay Police Service

If two weeks ago you had told me that I would be here, I would have thought it highly doubtful because of some of

the recent allegations being investigated. I want to thank DGC Alvin Fiddler for his leadership in putting this

together.

Don Lewis, Acting Detective Inspector, Thunder Bay Police Service

Some of the details of this investigation cannot be publicly disclosed. I can confirm that Thunder Bay Police

launched an abduction, sexual assault, and hate crime investigation on Dec 28. It is a major case because of its

serious nature. This means that specially trained investigators are assigned, and the case currently has 5 full time

investigators.

Dayna Wellock, Detective Staff Sergeant, Ontario Provincial Police

A/Inspector Lewis has done an excellent job of explaining the major crimes. Chief Levesque has asked us to assist

in the investigation. The investigation is on-going.

Norma Kejick, Executive Director, Northern Nishnawbe Education Council

One Tribal Council has withdrawn all of their students from Thunder Bay over safety concerns. Students have to

constantly defend who they are, and some have been told that they are unwelcome at Inter-City Shopping Centre.

Students are already dealing with the struggles of being a teenager, and are seeing things that many have not dealt

with prior to moving to Thunder Bay. Our staff try to act like parents and organize after school activities, but some

students do not have the necessary coping skills for the changes. A true city safety plan must also have cultural

relevance.

Wilfred King, Executive Director, Thunder Bay Indian Friendship Centre

The open door policy of J.P. Levesque must continue, and relationships must be expanded from there. It is vitally

important to build relationships with police so that they feel supported by all members of the community.

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Ingrid Green, Ontario Native Women’s Association

We are grateful to the men and students who are standing up to violence against women, as we are all responsible

for creating a safe community.

Joyce Hunter, Idle No More

It is important for Idle No More to be involved in community safety meetings, because everyone has the right to

feel safe in their community. Safety cannot be achieved without putting the unity in community.

AUDIENCE REMARKS

The majority of the violence against our people is by our own people. We must stand up and say no more, we must support the

police and the leadership.

One of the things that I would like to put out there, a long time ago our Elders, when couples had challenges, they would go see

them. That was a community responsibility that our Elders carried. We all have protection in our hearts because we care about

our people. I would like to see our community act as peacekeepers and be actively engaged in keeping our streets safe. We must as

a community work to build relationships with police and support them in their work.

Harsher punishment for sexual crimes, especially those deemed to be hate-motivated.

Cross cultural training not only for police, but also for city employees (bus drivers, etc.).

There must be an education push in Thunder Bay as outrage and racial hatred are too easily triggered and are the result of

ignorance. The letters that are often published in local media simply perpetuate prejudices and do not contribute meaningfully to

discussion.

A system where students from remote communities are given the same supports as new immigrants might be a useful program.

I know many people in the room, and that makes me comfortable. When we get to know the people around us, we feel

comfortable, and we feel safer.

The only way to find justice is to challenge racism each and every time, in every place. Non-Aboriginal people need to speak up if

we really want change. In many cases, the media perpetuates problems by publishing material that promotes hate, and does not

contribute to meaningful dialogue.

If 20% of Thunder Bay’s population is Aboriginal, the makeup of the public service, including police force, should reflect th is. It

gets tiring to hear people talk about their “hard earned tax dollars” being wasted. Students are going to the mall and being asked

to leave.

An incident took place between my son and an off duty police officer. I teach children about regalia and the drum. This education

should be available in all schools in the city.

Pride can be a good thing and a bad thing. Being proud of who you are can take you a long way, but having so much pride that

you are unwilling to change your prejudices is a bad thing. Used the example of a crumpled piece of paper to illustrate that the

harmful effects of racism cannot always be undone, and that each incidence has a lasting impact on a child.

RECOMMENDATIONS General

1) Conduct an inventory of existing committees, strategies, and services. Thunder Bay has many committees with varied mandates, including a Crime Prevention Council, Poverty Strategy, Youth Strategy, Drug Strategy, Anti-Racism Committee, Diversity Thunder Bay, etc. By identify existing mechanisms and compiling them into an inventory resource, the goal is to avoid any unnecessary duplication of services and committees. Specifics on how the resource can be utilized and what it would include will be discussed in the sections below.

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Law Enforcement/Justice

2) Aboriginal representation on the newly announced Special Task Force on crime prevention, and any other efforts to curb crime within the city. Assemble community leaders (i.e. Mayor, Councillors, Aboriginal Leaders, Chief of Police, etc.) to form the Special Task Group.

3) Encourage the judicial system to hand down the harshest sentences allowable for sexual offences, especially if the case is deemed hate motivated. Community Building

4) Promote the Dennis Franklin Cromarty open house, April 20, to encourage the general public to attend and learn about the school. Use the inventory resource to identify which existing groups can assist in orientation for students arriving from remote communities.

5) Ontario Native Women’s Association and other willing organizations to explore opportunities to host a women’s forum in Thunder Bay. This forum would be open to all women and other interested groups.

6) City and Aboriginal community to work together and accelerate efforts to establish permanent location for a Youth Centre. Education

7) Continue to support and evaluate cross-cultural training for municipal employees. 8) Place information in the inventory resource and encourage local business to access cross cultural training for

their employees. 9) Create awareness of existing Aboriginal content within school curriculum. Support efforts to develop and enhance

resource materials within local school boards. Communications

10) Encourage media to examine whether materials considered for publication contribute meaningfully to discussion and debate.

11) Greater police presence on social media to address concerns at the source. The goal is to direct those with legitimate concerns to appropriate complaint mechanisms, and discourage the spreading of unproven allegations.

12) Direct NAN community members who have concerns about policing to NAN legal services. This process will help those with concerns follow the complaints process, and discourage using social media to spread unproven allegations, many that police are not aware of. Include information on police complaints mechanism in the inventory resource.

13) Host a second forum in the spring of 2013 with a greater emphasis on participation from youth and women. Concerns about time limits on audience comments following the first forum were noted and will be reflected in the format of the second forum. Input from the audience will help inform future actions to promote community safety.

MOVING FORWARD The “Safe Streets, Safe Community“community safety forum was meant to be the beginning of the discussion on

community safety and relationship building. It has been stressed by all parties involved that meaningful change

will not occur without continuing dialogue. The next steps will involve more community engagement through

more open forums and feedback received through the email safetyforum@nan.on.ca . Recommendations from

future forums and those received by email will be reviewed on an ongoing basis. The goal is to identify tangible

steps that can be taken towards a safe community.

While the above recommendations will be explored, the most important goal that each individual in Thunder

Bay should strive for is to be respectful in their interactions with all of their fellow citizens.