Written by LAKAY, in collaboration with the Profiling Observatory of the University of Montreal (Céline Bellot, Director, and Félix Antonio Molina Vasquez, Research Assistant). Published in October 2021.

Summary

This report retraces five years of racial profiling in Repentigny, from 2017 to 2021, from the perspective of those who were subjected to it. It documents both the experiences of Black residents—most often recognized by the courts—and the repeated inaction of the City of Repentigny and its police service in acknowledging and ending the problem.

Based on high-profile and court cases, the report, according to its authors, represents "the tip of the iceberg": the research reveals the immense difficulty victims of racial profiling face in reporting these situations. It was published a few months after the death of Jean-René Junior Olivier, a Black man in distress who was shot and killed by Repentigny police officers on August 1, 2021, an event that marked a tragic turning point in this case.

His conclusion is unequivocal: despite the accumulation of situations, their media coverage and their recognition by the courts, the City and its police service have long denied the existence of racial profiling practices in their territory.

Key figures

• 3 times more — Black people are stopped three times more often than white people in Repentigny, according to the research report commissioned by the police service itself (Armony, Hassaoui and Mulone, 2021).
• 5 documented years — from December 2017 to July 2021.
• 80,000+ inhabitants — Repentigny, 13^e Quebec's most populous city, with a growing population from Black, Arab, Latin American and Asian communities.
• 9 complaints since 2019 — after six high-profile cases in 2018, the count had already reached nine complaints for the year 2019 alone.
• Judgments in favor of the plaintiffs — the courts have recognized racial profiling in several cases and awarded damages (up to 12,000 $ to each of the two children in one case, plus 9,000 $ in moral damages).
• Over-interference with young Black people in the evening — central conclusion of the report by researchers commissioned by the Repentigny City Police Service.

Methodology

The report is based on a historical timeline (2017-2021) reconstructed from public sources: newspaper articles from Montreal and Repentigny, court decisions and police ethics bodies, press releases and documentation of mobilizations led by LAKAY.

This approach combines two parallel narratives:

• on one side, the racial profiling experiences experienced and denounced by citizens, as well as their psychological, social, family and financial consequences; ;
• on the other hand, the responses from the City and its police department — most often the denial of the existence of a problem, or its reduction to a simple issue of intercultural relations.

The authors clarify that the document does not claim to be exhaustive: based on publicized testimonies, it captures only a fraction of a largely underreported phenomenon. The conceptual framework draws on the definition of racial profiling recognized by Quebec courts, formulated by the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ, 2005), as well as on the scientific literature on the systemic nature of these practices.

A chronology of denunciations and inaction

• December 2017 — LAKAY is organizing its first rally against racial profiling at a recreation center in Repentigny. A "enough is enough" sentiment was expressed, notably by citizens of Haitian origin.
• April 2018 — LAKAY returns with concrete counter-proposals to the police department.
• September 22, 2018 — first public demonstration in front of Repentigny City Hall.
• December 2018 — a report from Duty reveals a court decision awarding damages to a family for racial profiling.
• 2019 — increase in complaints and class actions; nine complaints recorded for the year alone.
• September 2020 — mobilization in front of the MP's office in L'Assomption.
• 2021 — LAKAY and the Montreal-North Legal Clinic are launching workshops on racial profiling aimed at Black communities.
• August 1, 2021 — Jean-René Junior Olivier, a black man in distress, is shot dead by Repentigny police officers.
• October 2021 — publication of this report, a few weeks before the municipal elections.

Why this report matters

Repentigny had never been the subject of in-depth research on racial profiling from the perspective of those affected. By methodically reconstructing five years of events, this report fills that gap and provides researchers, journalists, students, and policymakers with a documented basis for understanding the situation and demanding change.

For LAKAY, recognizing the existence of racial profiling in Repentigny and putting an end to it is not a militant approach but the expression of an attachment to the rule of law, which guarantees each person equal treatment in their interactions with public services.

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Cite this report: LAKAY Media, in collaboration with the Profiling Observatory (University of Montreal), Municipal inaction in the face of racial profiling in Repentigny: 2017-2021, October 2021.

Download the full report (PDF) · See all our publications on racial profiling

LAKAY is a non-profit organization in Repentigny that fights against racism and racial profiling and supports people who are victims of discrimination in Lanaudière. Learn more about our mission.