SPVM to decide on “thin blue line” patch
Some SPVM cops have been seen around town sporting the Thin Blue Line patch, so the force has announced it’s going to make a decision about it by spring. They’ve apparently been pondering this since at least 2022.
I don’t get it. They have rules about uniforms. They passed a law that shut down the camo pants protest. The SPVM simply needs to ordain that the uniform doesn’t include a gang patch, so knock it off.
Update: Québec Solidaire is pressuring public security minister François Bonnardel to act on this matter, after the minister chose to leave it up to individual police forces to decide whether to permit the patch. If Bonnardel wanted to indicate that he’s scared of police intransigence, he could not have found a better way to do it.
jeather 10:42 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
The problem is that the decision makers agree with the patch and don’t want to ban it so they keep “considering” forever to kick the can down the road.
CE 13:03 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
I saw an SPVM cop with it once. It was a black and white Canadian flag with the blue line. It was a bit jarring, kind of like you said, felt like a gang patch.
Nicholas 13:03 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
That law was struck down in August as a violation of their right to free expression. It’s now unclear if any uniform for any person is constitutional. Not sure if the province appealed, but they must have.
jeather 13:38 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
Ok, wait, how is it unconsitutional to prevent cops from wearing clown pants but NOT unconstitutional to prevent teachers from wearing hijabs?
Ian 13:58 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
Because only one of those things is perceived as a threat by ethnonationalists.
rob 14:30 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
Were’t they suppose to get this settle by last summer, then by new year? “espère statuer d’ici la fin du printemps “ don`t hold your breath, I expect more delays.
Bunch of racist hypocrites. ACAB.
jeather 14:51 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
I understand how the politics of it work, I wondered how the legalities did.
Ian 15:37 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
In this situation it’s kind of the same thing, the hijab law is against “visible religious symbols” but really only applies to non-christian religious symbols like turbans, kippah, and hijab – but mostly hijab. The theory is that these “visible religious symbols” threaten the hegemony of “real” Quebec culture.
The “thin blue line” patch asserts the “us vs. them” police mentality that actively supports the hegemony of an exclusionary view of what counts as “us”.
It’s essentially two different facets of the systemic racism inherent to the Quebec legal system.
Kate 16:39 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
Jonathan, does that actually mean that cops can credibly claim that wearing their uniform while on duty is a violation of their right to free expression? What about the public’s right to feel confident that this person claiming to exercise authority on behalf of civil society is actually a cop, and not some random goon?
H. John 17:03 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
As Nicholas pointed out, the Superior Court struck down the provisions of the Police Act forbidding uniform alteration.
It’s a well written, interesting analysis of labour rights:
FÉDÉRATION DES POLICIERS ET POLICIÈRES MUNICIPAUX DU QUÉBEC …
http://tinyurl.com/4jnahsxu
The court was not looking at racist patches. It was considering camo pants as a trade off in negotiating rights where strikes have been banned.
The government doesn’t seem to have appealed.
steph 20:45 on 2024-01-23 Permalink
Unions are only allowed to strike (means of pressure) once their convention have expired. The current SPVM convention is in place until 2026. Comparing the patch to camo pants (which was a means of pressure) is a moot point.
Couldn’t the cops just come up with a new symbol as to not confuse their “fraternity symbol” with “racism”? I can only imagine racists opposing that idea. I guess that’s why we’re still debating this… they’re actually a bunch of racists.