Black and Indigenous men and women have been overrepresented in cannabis possession arrests across Canada in the years since Justin Trudeau became Prime Minister, according to a VICE News investigation based on police data obtained through freedom of information requests.
It’s the first public set of statistics of its kind, as national arrest and charge numbers broken down by race do not exist in Canada, and police are under no obligation to proactively disclose them. The exclusive data provides further evidence that racial disparities in cannabis possession arrests are an issue in Canada, just like in the U.S.
The racial divide in cannabis possession arrests from 2015 to the first half of 2017 in cities such as Regina, Saskatchewan and Halifax, Nova Scotia is especially striking, though research has shown that cannabis use is similar across different racial groups.
Rachel Browne – Vice News – April 18, 2018.
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