Prime minister has ‘confidence’ in RCMP commissioner amid racism debate

OTTAWA (NEWS 1130) — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is expressing confidence in the country’s top Mountie after she said she is struggling with the definition of systemic racism.

Trudeau said Thursday he has worked closely with RCMP Commissioner Brenda Lucki over the years and trusts her to lead reforms in the national force.

“I have confidence in commissioner Lucki,” Trudeau said, “and I know that the changes she has already begun to bring to our national police force. And the work we are going to be doing in the coming months is going to make a huge difference in combatting systemic racism and reducing it in this country.”

Trudeau added he understands it is difficult for many people to acknowledge that systems in Canada were created and designed in a way that discriminates, but now is a time when people are awakening to that reality.

“Systemic racism is an issue right across the country, in all our institutions, including in all our police forces, including in the RCMP. That’s what systemic racism is. It’s not, in many cases, it’s not deliberate, it’s not intentional, it’s not aggressive individual acts of racism — although those obviously exist,” Trudeau said.

“It is recognizing that the systems we have built over the past generations have not always treated people of racialized backgrounds, of Indigenous backgrounds fairly through the very constructions of the systems that exist. That’s why it’s so difficult to address, because it does require us to look at the very building blocks of our institutions and of our country, and say, ‘OK, this outcome isn’t quite fair. We’re not quite bringing in or creating enough success for everyone, that people of privilege have an easier time than people who face discrimination,” he added.

“So as much as we admire and support the RCMP, we know we need to do better.”

His comments follow those by Lucki, who said in a pair of interviews that she believes there is an unconscious bias in the RCMP, but doesn’t acknowledge systemic racism is present.

She has committed to trying to bring in body cameras for her officers as the country looks to address systemic racism following the death of George Floyd.

Trudeau is standing by her.

Meanwhile, Green party leader Elizabeth May leveled allegations against the RCMP on Thursday, calling the police force a “racist institution.”

CityNews is hosting a special on Thursday called “Ending Racism: What Will It Take,” featuring Canadians talking about the personal impact of racism and how to defeat it. It will be broadcast on Citytv, OMNI, Rogers TV and Sportsnet.

Rogers is the parent company of NEWS 1130.

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