The Gatineau Police have grown quite famous for their love of racism, racial profiling and harassment of innocent citizens. Remember when in January 2019, Constable Jonathan Charbonneau, an officer with Gatineau Police for 14 years, was charged with assault and unauthorized use of police databases for personal reasons.One would think that this would bring some form of reform into the department; surprisingly they seem to have grown even worse.

In the same 2019, the Gatineau police department was conferred an ‘award’as Canada’s most racist police of 2019. This “award” was conferred on them by the Canadian Business Daily, for constantly harassing black and other disenfranchised members of the society.

It is no longer news that the Gatineau police department has continued to harass black people and other minorities, for ridiculous reasons such as “walking funny”; “walking on the grass”; “driving a rented vehicle” and “walking-off the sidewalk”.

Some of these outrageous cases of racial profiling have since been reported to the Quebec Human Rights Commission, who have since then, made active efforts to interview the City of Gatineau Prosecutor. However, for reasons not very far-fetched, the prosecutor has actively evaded every effort made by the commission to get in touch with him.

If you know this prosecutor, please ask him to quit playing games and return the calls from the Quebec Human Rights Commission. The prosecutor’s name is Mathieu Cloutier.Cloutier’soffice first said that the prosecutor couldn’t return his calls because he was on paternity leave, however, even after returning from his leave, he still has not returned any calls.

How hard can it be to affirm your responsibilities to affirm the fundamental human rights of all people, Mr.Cloutier? Like why you choose to constantly act like an oppressive “persecutor” instead of a prosecutor? Is it easier to be a bad cop than an upright citizen and representative of the Crown? You do realize that this is Canada in 2020, not South Africa 1970? And finally, why are you and your men so easily intimidated by black people?

In 2019, a black male was driving late at night on Boulevard Maloney in Gatineau, when he was followed and subsequently stopped by Officer Bergeron of the Gatineau Police, with badge number 5708. When the black male asked why he was stopped, Officer Bergeron replied that it was because he saw that he was driving a “rented car.”

Gatineau police officers have actually ticketed the same black male for “not walking on the sidewalk” of a Gatineau residential neighbourhood. And there has been yet another case of a black male who was rushing back to a restaurant after using the washroom? The man was questioned by the police for fifteen minutes, for “walking funny.”

These are cases that can no longer be ignored because they are like flesh wounds which would only fester when we try to pretend they don’t exist. Mr. Cloutier should please quit running away from these issues, man up and discharge his responsibilities pursuant to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms?