In Conversation: Barrie’s Police Budget with Activist Michael Speers

In the first of two conversations, Sam Gillett speaks with local activist Michael Speers on the Barrie police budget. 

Speers says the expected 2.65 per cent increase in the police budget reflects a lack of action on the part of city council. 

“Our local representatives have been very reluctant to even have those conversations,” said Speers. 

BCM spoke with Speers before General Committee, which is comprised of all city council members, discussed the police budget proposal, discussed the budget on January 18.

At that meeting, two amendments to the police budget were voted down: first councillor Riepma’s request to the police service for more information on the feasibility of a smaller budget increase, and next councilor Aylwin’s proposal for a $2.8 million reduction in budget, with that money being siphoned into County of Simcoe social services. 

While all but Aylwin and Riepma voted to amend the budget this year, multiple councillors voiced support for reallocation of the police budget and a boost for social services. 

“I’m a firm believer that we need to move to a system away from enforcement, a system of preventing crime in the first place,” said Deputy Mayor Ward. 

“It does save money,” said Ward. “The problem I have with this particular motion is that it’s a matter of process.” 

“I don’t know who’s job it  is to have a long-term plan, to move away from enforcement and into crime prevention,” said Ward, “but I don’t think the way to do it is taking $2.8 million from this year’s budget.” 

Speers says that if the budget passes as it is, with no amendments, it’s further proof change is necessary. 

“If it doesn’t work — if council says yes to a budget increase yet again,” said Speers,” I think that’s kind of a call to action for people, and I hope they see that much work needs to be done to change the minds of these politicians. “

In response to the City of Barrie’s budget allocation survey, 63 percent of respondents supported a 5% reduction in police services. Across Canada, a recent Ipsos poll shows around half of Canadians support a reallocation of Police Budgets, 

“People are seeing there’s another way, there’s a better way, to take care of each other, keep our communities safe.” 

2020 was a year in which widespread criticism of the system of policing in Canada came into the spotlight.  Similarly to the United States, Black and Indigenous peoples are over-represented in instances of police brutality, incarceration and fatal shootings across Canada. 

In Toronto, The Ontario Human Rights Commission reported that a Black person in Toronto was almost 20 times more likely than a White person to be involved in a fatal shooting at the hands of police. 

“People that say that’s not a problem in Barrie,” said Speers, “just simply don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s a problem everywhere.” 

In June 2020, Barrie City Hall approved the creation of an Anti-racism Task Force, sponsored by the Barrie Police Service.

Sam’s conversation with Esther Nikoli Enyolu a member of the Task Force and Executive Director of the Women’s Multicultural Resource and Counselling Centre in Durham, will be available next week. 

The next conversation about Barrie’s budget will be with Amber Beckett, a Barrie resident who’s been a key figure in the city’s Black Lives Matter protests.