G21-P051 Reallocation of RCMP Funding to Community-Based Programs| VGM- 2 Rejected by membership

Submitter Name

Kashtin Fitzsimons

The proposal was rejected by membership at VGM -2 with 71% of members in attendance voting to reject

Proposal

The GPC supports reallocating the annual RCMP budget of equal or greater funds to services previously delivered by the RCMP including but not limited to:

• Wellness checks and emergency calls related to mental distress;

• Community safety programs in Indigenous communities; and

• Community-based services to prevent gender-based violence.

Objective

To reallocate RCMP funding to non-violent, community-based programs. 

Benefit

Between 2000 and 2017, RCMP officers killed 118 civilians. RCMP officers have pointed their guns at individuals over 5,000 times since 2017 — the most common intervention tactic used. Eliminating interactions between RCMP officers and civilians will prevent violence and provide funding for alternative services that more adequately meet community needs.

Supporting Comments from Submitter

Yale: https://law.yale.edu/sites/default/files/area/workshop/leo/leo16_fryer.pdf

White Bird Clinic (CAHOOTS Program in Eugene, OR): https://whitebirdclinic.org/

Denver Alliance for Street Health Response: https://dashrco.org/

Portland Street Response: https://portlandstreetresponse.org/

CBC: https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/longform-custom/deadly-force

CBC: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/rcmp-use-of-force-data-1.5615871

Black Lives Matter: https://defundthepolice.org/alternatives-to-police-services/

CBC: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/rcmp-contract-policing-defund-1.5626544

Green Value(s)

Social Justice, Non-Violence

Relation to Existing Policy

Add to current GPC policy