By David P. Ball
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After months of homeowner complaints about public drug use and media reports, Vancouver Police Department's new initiative earns swift rebuke.
The Vancouver Police Department's new self-proclaimed "street disorder" squad — announced Monday after months of homeowner complaints and media reports on drug users and alleged crime — is already coming under scrutiny from anti-poverty advocates.
The police force's Deputy Chief Constable announced the new neighbourhood taskforce after releasing a VPD survey that showed rising concerns about some Vancouverites about so-called "rising crime" even though the statistics show that in fact serious crime has been declining for years.
The police acknowledged the squad will respond to calls it previously deemed "low priority," including "disturbances, suspicious circumstances, people trespassing, and mischiefs," VPD's Howard Chow said.
"Our police dispatch will triage the calls and go to the most serious," said Chow in a press conference Monday. "Where that's frustrating for some people is the lower end of calls — the lower priority calls — takes a while to get to.
"We know one of the reasons Vancouver ranks as a top city in a world is the sense of safety … If this deteriorates there will be implications for our way of life, economic consequences to business, and an impact on tourism."
But according to anti-poverty organization Pivot Legal Society, the new squadron is both unnecessary, and suggest that police care more about homeowner concerns than about people who are already vulnerable and marginalized, including substance users, homeless people and those with mental health issues.
"I was surprised, perhaps I shouldn't be, but seeing this response from the VPD that essentially creates a new layer of police enforcement of people who simply rely on public space is deeply concerning," said Pivot's policing and criminalization campaigner Meenakshi Mannoe, in an interview with The Pulse on CFRO. "Policing is an inappropriate response to systemic issues, including racism, poverty and substance use, which are being termed 'street disorder.'
"They're talking about unsightly conduct. I see a direct correlation to groups like Safer Vancouver who have been advocating a crackdown on people living on public space or relying on public space. They even say they're low-priority calls — they're not people necessarily engaged in any criminal activity, but 'scaring away customers from businesses.' This is really concerning public policy."