Front Burner - Black Canadians reflect on this week’s unrest

Episode Date: June 5, 2020

From the aggressive tactics of police at demonstrations in the United States, to the increasing demand to recognize systemic racism against Black communities and deal with police violence, to the ongoing threat of COVID-19 — it has been a chaotic and politically charged week. Today on Front Burner, we take a step back to listen to individuals who are deeply affected by the week’s events. Five Black Canadians share their reflections on worldwide protests following the death of George Floyd, who was killed by police, and the current attention towards issues of racial injustice and police brutality at home and abroad.

In the Dragon's Den, a simple pitch can lead to a life-changing connection. Watch new episodes of Dragon's Den free on CBC Gem. Brought to you in part by National Angel Capital Organization, empowering Canada's entrepreneurs through angel investment and industry connections. This is a CBC Podcast. Hi everyone, I'm Elaine Chao, one of the producers on the show. It's been an unprecedented and exhausting week in the news. For 10 nights in a row, cities all over the U.S. have been home to demonstrations against police brutality and racial injustice. Don't shoot! Don't shoot! Don't shoot! Black lives matter!

Here in Canada, we've seen anti-Black racism protests in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, Halifax. There are widespread calls on social media about the need to listen to Black voices and to learn about systemic racism. There's also a lot of hurt and frustration. So today, we're going to hear five Black Canadians reflect on that and what they hope might come out of this moment. And of course, their stories are just a few of many in this country. This is FrontBurner. When George Floyd died in Minneapolis last week at the hands of police,

and footage of that incident spread worldwide, Melissa Calixt had to really disengage from the news. That's not the norm for her. Melissa's really active in her community in Montreal, where concerns around racial profiling by police have only grown in recent years. A new independent report has been released looking at the Montreal police's street checks of racialized people. It found that Indigenous and Black people were four to five times more likely to be stopped by police than white people. She's been fighting anti-Black racism in the city for years.

Fighting racism, well, it's something I would say became more of a priority for me in my early 20s, especially with Travion. I think Travion was really what triggered it, which is pretty common in my generation. It's something that basically shadowed my entire 20s. And I just turned 30 not too long ago in May. And it's kind of sad because I'm like, okay, so am I going to spend the next decade fighting this, you know, having the same fight, the same conversations? And I have a feeling that that will be the case. The fear of having the same fight, the same conversations over and over again, was a big part of what made Melissa want to ignore the news for at least a little bit. I think it was Sunday that I finally spoke to my younger brother and I admitted to him that I've been doing what we called emotional avoidance. It was the first time that I admitted to him that Tamir Rice's face,

and I'm going to try not to cry at this point, Tamir Rice's face reminds me of my brother. There was a guy that held a pistol, you know, it's probably fake, but he's like pointing it at everybody. The guy was a 12-year-old, Tamir Rice. The police dispatcher apparently didn't relay the part that the gun could be fake. Soon a squad car pulls up and within two seconds, Officer Timothy Lohman guns down the boy. Three commands were given.

And when I first learned of Tamir Rice, I was in school and I had to, it's as if like my brain knew something that my heart didn't. So I had to logically remind myself that it couldn't be my brother. Because, you know, I was like, no, we're in Canada. This happened in Ohio. There's no way that he could have been in a park. There's no way he could have been playing with a toy gun. Because at that point my brother, uh, was in his later teenage years.

So I had to like, I had to process it logically to like calm my heart down because I just looked at his face and all I saw was my brother. And to this day, to this day, when I, I, when I look at the victim's face, it's one face that I always try to avoid because there's just something about that face that just reminds me of my brother. And his story sounds like something that could have happened to him. There's a savagery in that story that just, I just can't get over. Just the fact that, you know, the police pulled up and didn't even get a chance to get out of the car before they shot him down. And I remember also my brother when he was younger, he must have been maybe around 9, 10. I remember telling him, right now you're cute. Right now you're the cute kid.

You know, the local cops, they give you a basketball, but one day you will grow, you will grow up. And if you're lucky like that, you will grow you will grow up and if you're lucky like that you will you know shoot past six feet and then you'll no longer be that cute kid you will be a threat and you have to be aware of that and so for sure if you have a black man in your family for sure he's the first one you think of. But then when the victims started multiplying, when the diversity of the victims started multiplying, what I mean by that is that you didn't have just Black men anymore. Now it was Black women. It was Black children. It was Black girls. Loved ones of Breonna Taylor grieving and outraged. The 26-year-old Louisville first responder shot eight times and killed by

police. And so now I can't help but worry about everyone, including myself. The problem at the end of the day is not even us. And so when the problem is not you and it's not what you do or what you don't do, then you just can't help but worry about everyone because basically everyone is at risk. Yeah, so now it's not even just about my brother anymore. I'm just scared for everyone. Hello, my name is Caleb Fontaine. I'm Haitian. I moved to Canada at the age of like 11 months, so I was really young. I lived in Ottawa for most of my elementary years, and then I moved here in Montreal.

Went to high school here, went to college here. And I also am an advocate for racial justice. When you look at what's going on in the US, if you're my color, if you look like me, if you're Black, and you look at these images, as soon as a video starts, you instantly cringe, right? As soon as you see the lights turn on behind a black person's car and you hear the officer giving instructions, you instantly cringe because you know that it's going to go wrong. You know that it's not a comedy sketch. a comedy sketch um it's probably some real footage of someone's probably going to be either shot murdered or tased or uh violently pulled out of their car and their rights are going to be violated like it's it's just it's just becoming like the norm when you see that kind of videos and it does give you trauma to a certain extent that people don't want to address it gives you trauma and when whenever i'm like pulled over let's say even for a traffic stop like you you fear for your life

that's why you see a lot of us don't even feel safe calling the police when when something bad happened to us like because you think the police are just going to come and think that you're the perpetrator you know and every time we look at this footage we cringe right away before the interaction even starts and the average i feel like the average you know white person is not able to relate to that because that's not a reality they face every day. But we have to watch, we have to watch these videos. Oftentimes I hear some of my peers say, a big situation, let's say like Ahmaud Arbery who got shot. Like we have those group chats and like a lot of us are just like, oh, I haven't watched a video yet.

I'm not ready for it. You know, like we're not ready to watch this. Like it's just too much to take. State investigators now testifying that video and statements from the suspects show that Arbery was, quote, chased, hunted down and ultimately executed. And that the man who shot him used a racial slur as he stood over his body. What Caleb Fontaine just talked about, the pain and trauma that comes from watching footage of police brutality against Black people, is something that Trayvon Clayton also brought up with me.

He's 22 years old and made national news last year when he was the target of a racial profiling incident on Parliament Hill. It eventually led to a personal apology from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Trudeau met privately with African Nova Scotian youths, including several who said they were racially profiled on a recent visit to Parliament Hill. They say a government employee complained about them being noisy and referred to them as dark-skinned people. Trayvon Clayton, one of the youth, wanted an apology from the Prime Minister. He says he got one in private. What did you make of what you heard?

I sure did. I sure did and I totally respect his apology. And also we share some thoughts. Since then, Trayvon has been really active in fighting against racism in his home of Nova Scotia. And like a lot of people, this week's events have brought back a lot of pain for him. When I first heard about George Floyd, it just like, it hurt me. Because I've been filled with pain for a very long time. When I was 16, I was brutally arrested by a police officer. He put his knee to the back of my head. And so it

just made me reflect on my trauma that I've been through. And growing up as a young Black male, it's like, that's something we face on a regular basis. How do people let this slide? How do people let this continue to happen? Because George Floyd wasn't the first one murdered by a police officer like it's just crazy that there's been so much names mentioned way before mentioned years before but yet it's still allowed this we still let it slide and it's just like it all builds up to me because here in Halifax Nova Scotia there's also racism here and it's like I face that every single day. And so growing up, it's tough being Black, but I love it because that's who I am.

That's what I do. And I'm proud to say I am Black. I've seen that a lot of non-colored people were saying Black Lives Matter and posting posts about the situation that happened with George Floyd. And so it was just like, all right, like I'm tired of seeing everyone post on social media. I'm tired of seeing them show that they care through social media and show that they care behind a screen where I can't see their actual facial expression or the way they feel or what they're really doing. And so what I did, I went and put on my social media. I just gave it to them the way I felt. I was like, I'm tired of non-colored people posting and sharing stories about the situations that are happening with police brutality. But where are you guys at when

we protest against that kind of stuff? Where are you guys at when we protest against that kind of stuff? Where are you guys at when we march against that? And so I basically just called the moat and I was like, you need to show your face. And then after that, it just kind of, it took off there. Like I had a lot of my non-collar friends that messaged me like, hey, what can I do to support the events and stuff? And the first thing I would say would be at the protest, be at this march and show your face, show that you care.

And if you don't, like I would ask also, like, do you know what the problem is? Do you understand what is going on? And if they would say no, then I would be like, then you are the problem. problem. If you find that a police officer killing an unarmed black man or black woman isn't really an issue, then you are a part of the problem. But if you're against it, then you have to take advantage of the privilege you have and use it against your own people. Monday's protest here in Halifax, and when I was standing up on that stage front and on the mic, when I would see the faces up there, all the beautiful colors, not just blacks and not just whites, I was grateful to say that I felt welcome for the first time ever here in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

I felt proud to say I am Nova Scotian. That desire and hope for change in Nova Scotia and in Canada more widely is something that Kaysa Monroe Anderson has been thinking a lot about. She's a community worker, an educator, someone who's dedicated her career to advocating for people of African descent. Kesa is also married and has three kids. And for her and her household, all the unrest this week has been exasperating. I am frustrated. I feel overwhelmed. But I also have a righteous anger, which moves me to look for solutions, which leads me to look for light during this intense time of darkness. George Floyd could have been my brother.

He could have been my uncle. He could have been my uncle. He could have been my children's uncle. He could have been a member of my family, and we see him as such. Although we do not live in Minneapolis, Minnesota, we don't live in the United States, we live in Canada, which is supposed to also be the land of the free, we know the truth, which is that anti-Black racism is alive and well in Nova Scotia and alive and well in Canada. Going into a grocery store not long ago, as my son and I, my eldest, my 15-year-old, he was 14 then, walked in, he looked at me and he said, Mom, he said, I should take my hands

out of my pockets, shouldn't I? I said, yes, you should. And he was wearing a hoodie. He said, I should out of my pockets, shouldn't I? I said, yes, you should. And he was wearing a hoodie. He said, I should pull down my hoodie, shouldn't I? I said, yes. I said, do you know why? And he said, yes, because I don't want them to think I'm stealing. How many white 14-year-olds have that same thought? You know, when you hear security on aisle nine and you realize, okay, well, I'm the only one in aisle nine. You know, what's the need for security? Well, obviously, black lives and black bodies are seen as criminal. When I think about my daughter, I'm taking her into a store, department store.

And we were waiting on my son to try on an item of clothing in the changing room. And while we waited, because, you know, I'm the only adult with my children, they were younger than I didn't want to take my daughter into a changing room to try on what she wanted. So I said, Oh, Jordan, we can just try on this blouse right here. I look around, you know, it's clear, the light is on really brightly above where we are, everybody can see. I took the blouse and I put it over Jordan's neck, you know, to try it on. And she started to cry. She was about seven years old at the time. And I said, Jordan, what's the matter? She said, mommy, no. And I said, what's the matter, Jordan? She said, mommy, I don't want them to think I'm stealing. I don't want them to think we're stealing.

Kesa describes this as the everyday trauma that her and her children go through. It's the kind of trauma that doesn't make the headlines, but that her family lives with all the time. When we think about what we've seen in Nova Scotia at the end of last year, the beginning of this year, a woman with two children shopping in Walmart and wrestled to the ground having endured a concussion, a broken wrist. We think about an African Nova Scotian man tased enduring a concussion on Quinnpool Road in Halifax. We think about a 15-year-old boy in Bedford. I can go outside if I want to.

You'll get arrested. Really? For what? For speaking my mouth? No. For speaking? Really? Don't you touch to. You'll get arrested. Really? For what? For speaking my mouth? No. For speaking? Really? Don't you touch me. You're under arrest.

Don't you touch me. That's 20 minutes from my house. I have a 15-year-old. The night I found out about that, I looked at my husband and I said, that could be our son. 15 years old. That was not in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That was 20 minutes from my house,

and that could have been my 15-year-old son. KESA hopes that this is a time where people with privilege and power will actually begin to address issues of systemic discrimination against Black people. More representation in politics, education, the healthcare system. A greater appreciation of Black history and the contributions of Black communities. And even when we're wrapping up our conversation, Kesa's voice is full of energy and determination on this point. For her, this international conversation we're having about anti-Black racism is a long time coming.

Protest of the kind that we're seeing across the world and in Nova Scotia, it is necessary. And it was only a matter of time and we're seeing the eruption and the demand that we be seen as human and that the anti-Black racism, the systemic discrimination at all levels in the justice system, with police, in the education system, in the health care system, it must end. You heard Kaysa Monroe Anderson talk about the need to address discrimination in the health care system. That's something that relates directly with the ongoing threat of COVID-19.

In the U.S., Black communities are disproportionately affected. They represent about 13% of the country's population, but more than half of COVID-related deaths. And in Toronto, research has shown that the virus is more prevalent in low-income neighborhoods and areas with more immigrants and visible minorities. Dr. Kwame McKenzie is the CEO of the Wellesley Institute, a think tank that studies urban health issues. He's calling for Canada to collect race-based data on COVID-19 infections. Every day we don't have the data, and every day we haven't spoken to communities to try and find out the way, the best way to protect them, is a day when we may lose a life that we could have protected, right? So when, you know, this isn't hypothetical stuff. It's not,

you know, sort of, oh, well, you know, wouldn't it be nice? This is lives. This is people being infected. This is people dying, where if we had the data and the data shone a light on a particular population, we might be able to move resources there. We might be able to do more testing, more tracking, more isolating, and we might be able to save people's lives. So if you hear any frustration in my voice, it's because the stakes are so high. That's all for today. Frontburner comes to you from CBC News and CBC Podcasts.

The show was produced this week by Mark Apollonio, Imogen Burchard, Nahaya Tzush, Derek Vanderwyk, and myself. Derek also did our sound design, along with Mandy Sham and Matt Cameron. Our music is by Joseph Shabison of Boombox Sound. The executive producer of Frontburner is Nick McCabe-Locos. I'm Elaine Chao. Thanks for listening. For more CBC Podcasts, go to cbc.ca slash podcasts.