Conclusion

Concerns with the process

We cannot conclude this report without acknowledging some of the obstacles faced in undertaking the work to develop the Strategy. The community consultations and the Steering Group meetings led to rich and important conversations that have informed the Strategy. However, concerns were expressed about the short timelines provided to undertake the work. There was only a year between the formation of the Steering Group and the completion of the Strategy, and even less time was given to community groups to develop and implement broad public consultations. Furthermore, some community organizations expressed that their membership was experiencing “consultation fatigue” and a distrust of the process, given the perceived lack of action resulting from previous engagements. Some organizations also expressed challenges in gaining access to custodial institutions to speak to Black prisoners. Others were unable to attend all the cities and towns in their province or territory. This limited the number and diversity of voices that were heard, and meant that there was a lack of standardization between the reports from each province or territory. As well, community groups expressed a need for greater resources to adequately undertake this work.

If similar work is done in the future, we recommend that more time be dedicated to it, and that there be increased compensation and more structure surrounding the process. We also recommend that the work of the Strategy continue, with further consultations and opportunities to participate offered to community groups and stakeholders.

With these considerations in mind, this Strategy envisions a justice system very different from any that Canada has ever had. If all these recommendations are enacted, we expect that, with time, the criminal justice system will transform from one that punishes the poorest and most marginalized members of our society, and that carries a history of racism and oppression, to one that is fair and equitable and free from discrimination; in other words, a justice system that is truly just.

We are proposing big changes that require Canadians to think of justice differently; to move away from narratives of punishment to ones of accountability, reparations, and crime prevention. These changes will redirect resources to communities, to address the root causes of crime by healing trauma and increasing opportunity.

The criminal justice system we have was built over centuries, and it will take time to dismantle it and to build a new relationship with Black communities of trust and confidence in a new system. This is the only way forward to safer, healthier communities, and the sooner we start implementing this Strategy, the sooner we will see its positive effects. It is the hope of the authors that what we have offered will make a real and important difference in the lives of our children, and all who come after us. In the spirit of the Africentric lens by which we wrote this report, we conclude with a Yoruba word often used in Black communities to signal the life force or power that creates that of which we speak: Ase.