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News

Minority Report

Rating: NNNNN


Number of sworn officers on Toronto police service: 5,324

Number of visible minority members: 642

Representing what percentage: 12

Percentage in 98: 7.5

Percentage in 86: 3

Number of civilians on the Toronto police service: 2,100

Number of visible minority civilian members: 460

Representing what percentage: 21.9

Percentage in 98: 22.1

Percentage in 86: 1.1

Number of new hires since 2000: 244

Percentage of visible minority hires: 23

Percentage of Toronto residents who are members of visible minorities: 53

Who ranks?

Total number of senior officers on Toronto police service: 89

Number who are members of visible minorities: 6

Number in 98: 3

Number in 86: 1

Number of deputy chiefs: 2

Number who are members of visible minorities: 0

Number of staff superintendents: 6

Number who are members of visible minorities: 0

Number of superintendents: 22

Number who are members of visible minorities: 2

Number of staff inspectors: 24

Number who are members of visible minorities: 2

Number of inspectors: 35

Number who are members of visible minorities: 2

Number of staff sergeants/detective sergeants: 257

Number who are members of visible minorities: 11 *

Number of sergeants/detectives: 922

Number who are members of visible minorities: 31 *

Number of constables: 3,850

Number who are members of visible minorities: 334 *

The promotion shuffle

Number of police divisions: 16

Number headed by a member of a visible minority: 1 (53 Division)

Number of specialized police units: 16

Number headed by a member of a visible minority: 2 (mounted unit, communications services)

Not so black-and-white

What Toronto police services’ declaration of principles says

“An effective relationship with the community must be supported by an effort to be representative of the community.”

What the recently released Ferguson Report says about recruiting:

The Toronto police’s employment unit “has lacked the capacity to develop a truly professional, properly focused and targeted recruitment program.”

Why police say there aren’t more visible minority members on the force:

They’re difficult to attract and retain.

Why policing observers say there aren’t more visible minority members:

The force hasn’t seen an advantage in recruiting people of colour or those who speak a second language.

What the force has been doing to attract visible minority members:

• Holding job fairs and public presentations

• Advertising in ethnic media, on billboards, in the TTC and movie theatres

What policing observers say the force should be doing:

• Re-evaluating training programs at police colleges

• Establishing mentoring programs to more quickly promote visible minority officers

What past studies have identified as a major obstacle to visible minority recruiting:

• Standardized testing that fails to account for cultural biases

The arguments for visible minority targets:

• We’re way behind and need to do something fast to engender visible minority community support and confidence.

• Police can’t have a good relationship and get information they need from visible minority communities if they’re not trusted.

The weird thing:

Aboriginals are not considered visible minorities by Toronto police and don’t figure as such in their stats.

* Based on 1998 statistics

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