Calgary Police Force Accused of Racial Bias After Alarming Race-Based Data Released

CALGARY – An analysis of race-based data has revealed that the Calgary Police Service (CPS) disproportionately used force against Indigenous and Black individuals in the city last year, reigniting concerns about systemic racism within law enforcement. The findings, released in two reports presented at the Calgary Police Commission, highlight troubling racial disparities in how the CPS engages with marginalized communities.

The reports stem from a commitment made by CPS in 2020 to collect and report race-based data to address concerns about policing equity and bias. This initiative was part of broader national conversations about police accountability, spurred by the Black Lives Matter movement and calls to end racial injustice in policing.

The analysis found that both Indigenous men and women, along with Black men, were significantly overrepresented in police use-of-force incidents compared to their share of the population. Use of force in CPS operations includes a range of aggressive actions, such as stuns, strikes, dynamic takedowns, leg restraints, spit masks, and the deployment of weapons like batons, pepper spray, and firearms.

Deputy Police Chief Brad Tawfik acknowledged that the data is based on officers’ perceptions during interactions rather than on self-reported racial identities from individuals involved. This reliance on perception-based data introduces potential inaccuracies, as officers may make assumptions about a person’s race, which could influence how they respond.

“At this point, it’s perception data, but there’s talk at the national level around whether it should be self-identification or both,” Tawfik explained. “This is a start, and we recognize the limitations in our analysis.”

While Tawfik cautioned against drawing definitive conclusions from this data, the fact remains that Indigenous and Black communities bear the brunt of disproportionate police actions. The reports also indicate that racialized males and females are underrepresented in use-of-force incidents, raising questions about how these disparities align with community safety and fairness.

Tawfik emphasized that the overall number of police interactions leading to the use of force is relatively small. “It’s about 0.14 percent of interactions that rise to a level of a use-of-force report being submitted,” he said, translating to one out of every 703 interactions. However, this statistic does not diminish the significance of racial discrepancies, especially for communities disproportionately affected by police actions.

The findings in Calgary echo similar reports from other parts of Canada, where racialized communities face elevated risks of police violence. In Toronto, a 2022 report revealed that 39 percent of people subjected to police force in 2020 were Black, despite Black residents making up a much smaller portion of the city’s population. The report further found that Black residents were more likely to have firearms pointed at them by police while unarmed than their white counterparts.

Toronto Police Chief James Ramer issued a public apology following the report’s release, acknowledging the harm caused to racialized communities.

Calgary Police Chief Const. Mark Neufeld reaffirmed CPS’s commitment to data transparency and accountability. He noted that while CPS is working on its own methodologies, it is also collaborating nationally to develop data standards for race-based reporting in policing.

“We are sharing the results of the analysis conducted by the Calgary Police Service as additional efforts towards a national framework remain underway,” Neufeld said, signaling that CPS aims to address these troubling findings through a more consistent and comprehensive approach.

Shawn Cornett, Chair of the Calgary Police Commission, stated that collecting and analyzing race-based data has been a key priority in efforts to identify bias and address systemic racism. “Race-based data helps us better understand areas where some communities are experiencing policing differently than others, and it makes it possible to track the effectiveness of ongoing work in this area,” Cornett said. She acknowledged that while the release of the reports marks progress, it is only the beginning of the hard work necessary to combat racism in policing.

Calgary’s reports come as national conversations about racial disparities in policing continue to intensify, with increasing pressure on police forces to reckon with their treatment of marginalized communities.

The release of these race-based data reports is a step toward greater accountability, but activists and community leaders argue that more needs to be done to confront and dismantle systemic racism in law enforcement. They are calling for tangible changes in how the police interact with Indigenous, Black, and other racialized individuals, along with more robust community oversight.

As Calgary Police strive to address these findings, the reports serve as a stark reminder of the deep-rooted inequalities that still exist in policing across Canada. The challenge now is to ensure that meaningful reforms follow the data, so that no one in Calgary feels targeted or mistreated by those sworn to protect them.