Calgarians marched to city hall and the courthouse to protest against local police violence and justice for Calgarian Godfred Addai.
On Thursday, the chants “No Justice – No peace – No racist police,” and “Black Lives Matter,” filled the streets of Calgary’s downtown core. Protesters voiced anger and frustration in the brutal assault of Godfred Addai and racism within the police department.
Shuwana Porter, founder and previous CEO of the United Black People’s Allyship, said this march is to represent frustrations amongst the community in hopes of systematic change.
“It’s important not only to address the CPS and address what’s happening in the city. But to address every single agency, the school system, the healthcare systems, and the legal system,” she said,
“Every single service agency that deals with black and vulnerable people are important. We need to address every single institution consistently because if not, we’re not changing the dialogue.”
Godfred Addai’s story
Addai was featured in a CBC documentary called Above the Law, which aired on July 13. The documentary triggered outrage within the community and caused Calgarians to take to the streets.
In the documentary, Addai was shown being illegally detained and then beaten by police back in 2013. Constable Trevor Lindsay was involved in that case.
The current leader of the United Black People’s Allyship, Adam Messiah, said he hopes to make people in Calgary are aware racism exists in Canada.
He wants police department reform, including terminating Lindsay’s employment.
“He was on paid leave so he’s actually still a member of the police department. What I’d like to see today is honestly the CPS kind of step up and actually fire this person from the Calgary police department,” he said.
Massiah also want to bring attention to how black people are treated when it comes to law enforcement. He demands the violence stop.
“Nobody should be above the law. We’ve seen time and time and time and time again, especially when it comes down to black and Indigenous people in Calgary, police are able to get away with assault,” he said.
“They’re able to get away with shootings, they’re able to get away with heinous crimes hate crimes like harassment against black and Indigenous people.”
