A new study out of York University is highlighting concerns about Indigenous racial profiling.
The study is called “Indigenous Consumer Racial Profiling in Canada: A Neglected Human Rights Issue.”
Its co-author says discrimination in retail environments is commonplace.
Dr. Les Jacobs told Global News it’s “a daily, everyday experience, that they are in consumer interactions, whether they’re shopping, whether they’re going into a bank.”
Jacobs noted an incident in 2020 at a Canadian Tire in Coquitlam. Richard Wilson and his daughter Dawn were buying tires and getting an oil change. They did some shopping, then, at the till, Wilson says a security guard asked to look through his bag.
Wilson said, “I feel racially profiled (while) I’ve been followed around in the store. It really bothers me, I just try not to let it bother me but it does.”
Dawn Wilson says the profiling continued when she complained to an employee.
“He looked at me and he said ‘My dad taught me the difference between an Indian and a native.’ And I said ‘Yeah, what’s that?’ And he said an Indian comes from the reserve and begs and steals and demands money.”
Canadian Tire did not respond to our request for comment about the alleged incident.
Dr. Les Jacobs commented, “There’s a real opportunity here for a major Canadian retailer like Canadian Tire to work with researchers to really understand the extent of the problem.”
York University’s study has numerous recommendations, which include promoting restorative justice and education.
The incident at Canadian Tire will be heard by the BC Human Rights Tribunal in October.