Your rights, the reality, and building a struggle against police terror in our communities
By an anonymous contributor
The following contribution comes from someone who BASICS knows to be quite knowledgeable about how police raids are conducted. This person asked to remain anonymous. Please note that this article, though it touches on issues relating to the law, is not legal advice and should not be used as a substitute for legal advice. It is strongly recommended that you seek advice from a lawyer about specific issues and questions relating to the law.
Police raids have become commonplace in large urban centers in North America. Often executed by police using paramilitary weapons and methods, the tactic is rooted in militarized urban policing and the policy of counterinsurgency. The tactic is most often used in poor, working-class and racialized communities, and often reflects efforts by the state to ‘clean-up’ neighbourhoods affected by poverty and unemployment.
Raids happen frequently in public housing buildings, and poor neighbourhoods, with warrants being issued for some buildings multiple times a month. In the biggest and most public examples, hundreds of heavily armed officers descend on neighbourhoods to conduct operations in the middle of the night, smashing doors and detonating explosives in so-called “dynamic” entries designed to spread fear and disorient tenants. While everyday police detention and harassment allows police to (illegally) gather intelligence on their planned targets (frequently young unemployed men), police raids act as the hammer-blow of overwhelming state force.
The use of this tactic is also closely linked to areas in the city that are experiencing high levels of gentrification, such as in Toronto’s downtown east side. Massive police raids are often deployed to uproot communities and smash networks and relationships in an attempt to break the social base of the neighbourhood and force the poor out, allowing developers to fundamentally change the face of the area by building houses and condos that none of the current residents could ever afford.
In Toronto, police raids are most often conducted by the Emergency Task Force (ETF), a team of 82 heavily armed officers on call 24/7, divided into 7 assault teams. These raids are frequently planned by investigators from various police divisions and task forces, often the infamous Toronto Drug Squads (TDS), Guns and Gangs Task Force (GGTF), and the Hold-Up Squad, as well as division-based Major Crime Units (MCU). There is often a massive police raid every summer in Toronto, usually in May or June (before the officers go on their holidays). In order to get authorization for a raid, police officers must go before a justice of the peace or judge to get a warrant.
Resistance to police raids must come from people in affected communities themselves. First and foremost, those organizing resistance must understand well the neighbourhoods and forces in play. Police engaged in these tactics do not hesitate to use deadly force, as the killing of Eric Osawe and the subsequent exoneration of ETF officer David Cavanagh illustrates.
Neighbourhoods suffering poverty and targeted for police raids often are divided along various fault lines. Such threats and divisions make organizing in this area very challenging.
People aiming to further community empowerment and resistance to police raids might consider the following principles:
1. During a raid, keep safe while you assess the situation and the possibility for community response. Heavily-armed police armed with automatic weapons will be everywhere, and they see everyone as a potential threat. Make no swift or sudden movements, and keep your hands in view. Keep a safe distance where possible. Take care to protect yourself and others from danger and police violence. This is the most important step! Detention, arrest, injury or death can arise during police raids.
2. If you are in a place that is targeted by a raid, assert your rights :
- Ask to see a copy of the search warrant, and look for any errors. Point out any errors to the officer.
- Do not consent to any search of your residence or your person.
- Ask if you are free to go, and if not, ask why not.
- Ask to speak to a lawyer.
- While monitoring police using your camera or cellphone might be ideal, quickly reaching for a phone or camera can get you shot. Better for others to record from a safe distance.
- Even if you cannot use your phone, use your eyes. Memorize badge numbers (located on chest, shoulders, and hat). Memorize scout car numbers (near the rear wheel and under the trunk on the back).
3. If you can, act as a witness and stand against police violence . Attend near the scene and gather in groups at a safe distance and watch the situation. Film or take pictures where appropriate to monitor police misconduct, while remaining aware that if the cops think your phone contains evidence of a crime, they may try to seize it as evidence. Vocally objecting to police misconduct and violence is not a crime, though the police may try to tell you it is or respond forcefully. Be bold but be safe.
4. Take pro-active steps to organize a community response. Getting people together to discuss issues of police violence and aggression and agreeing on a community response plan in case of police raids is a good idea. This way, unity around the issue and developing a co-ordinated plan for responding to police violence can be done with all interested people. Some might choose to take on the role of being independent journalists or ‘copwatchers’ to record police misconduct; others might be more comfortable interacting with officers and conveying requests and demands from the community. Others might want to take care to ensure detained people are safe and have access to lawyers or medical attention. Reminding people to prepare a release plan (someone trusted to bail you out if arrested) is important if you plan on taking an active role in confronting police violence. For this, building a local network of contacts and then bringing folks together for a community meeting is a good first step. Reach out to BASICS if you are interested in organizing such a forum in your community.
So often, the burden of police violence falls on women and oppressed people. Similarly, the strongest leadership in the face of police violence often comes from women and young people. Taking the lead from grassroots women and young people is a crucial step in building unity and people’s power in advance of police raids. This must involve openly discussing community issues of poverty, violence, housing, and genuine safety and security. Police propaganda preys on people’s insecurity to build support for police repression and to divide any community response.
Efforts to build community unity against police violence must incorporate a broad approach with principled bold initiatives, both to strengthen our responses to police aggression, and also to stay true to principles of grassroots mass organizing and neighbourhood resistance. For more information on how to film the police and act as a witness in standing against police violence, visit the Network for Elimination of Police Violence’s website at nepv.org.
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