Ottawa police have been criticized for responding to a student protest in front of a Catholic high school over the blitz dress code, especially as they responded to the Freedom Convoy blockade earlier this year.
Students staged a large protest in front of Beatrice Delog Catholic High School in Orleans during Friday lunch break, a day after students said teachers called several students out of class for alleged violations of the school’s dress code.
Protesters said the “blitz” on Thursday was aimed specifically at women who had been taken to the director’s office to have their shorts and skirts measured by – and in front of – male and female staff members.
“They made us bend down and touch our toes to prove that our underwear was not visible, and they touched the inside of our thighs to measure us – which is sexual violence because we disagreed.” said Chloe Dumoulin, a student at the school.
The story continues under the ad
Dumoulin and another student, Cheyenne Lehuye, said up to 60 students were told to change clothes or go home and return in different clothes. None of the targeted students is a man, they said, who were also wearing shorts and sleeveless shirts due to the 30-degree weather.
The two were among more than 100 students who staged a demonstration in front of the school on Friday against staff attitudes toward students. Many wore shorts in protest.
Read more: Ottawa police do not charge a woman who danced at the tomb of an unknown soldier
Police said in a statement that they responded to what they called “anxiety” at the school around 11:30 a.m. to help staff. They said a man had been arrested “for disorderly conduct and border violations” but was later released without charge, adding that the man was not a student at the school.
However, videos posted on social media show that police laid hands on more than one person while responding to a group of students protesting across the street in solidarity, according to Dumoulin and Leuvier.
These students were seen in the videos shouting loudly at police, including a man who was seen being taken away by officers in a police car, where he was pinned to the side of the vehicle and later handcuffed and placed in a cruiser.
The story continues under the ad
“He didn’t even touch (the officer),” Dumoulin said. “(The officers) were so aggressive, they told everyone that if they crossed the street, they would be fined. It was far above the border. “
The French Catholic School Board, the Conseil des écoles catholiques du Center-Est, said they could not verify who had called the police.
A spokesman confirmed that none of the students who had quarrels with the police were from Beatrice Delog.
The police response quickly sparked discontent among social media users, as well as concerns from selected city officials.
Popular stories
-
An inexperienced passenger lands on the plane after the pilot is incapacitated
-
Canadian Supreme Court says voluntary extreme intoxication is protection against violent crime
City Count. Catherine Keats, whose unit includes Beatrice-Delog, questioned the police’s behavior with students and young people attending the protest, in light of how police reacted to the convoy that blocked the city’s streets for three weeks in January and February.
“After everything that our city has been through recently, and to see a pretty indifferent approach to these protests, and then to see that happen, I absolutely think there should have been a bigger de-escalation,” she told Global News. .
“I think that while there was no threat to the safety of other students, she was not treated appropriately.
1:39 Ottawa police learn ‘a lot’ from truck protests, while Rolling Thunder motorcycle convoy hits city this weekend Ottawa police learn ‘a lot’ from truck protests, while Rolling Thunder motorcycle convoy hits the city this weekend – April 28, 2022
City councilors and residents warned police during the Freedom Convoy protests that they had not done enough to quell the noise, including incessant horns that lasted all night and disturbed residents of the center.
The story continues under the ad
Reports also surfaced from locals shortly after the convoy arrived on January 28th, describing meetings with participants they said constituted harassment, harassment, intimidation and hateful behavior.
It took police another week after the federal government cited the hitherto unused Emergency Act, until the blockade was finally lifted in late February.
When pressured by Global News about what prompted their response to Friday’s student protest, Ottawa police sent out the definition of “embarrassment,” as stated in the Penal Code.
The code defines the disturbance in part as “fighting, shouting, shouting, swearing, singing or using offensive or obscene language” – a definition Keats agrees with applies to both convoy protests and student demonstrations.
“If they were there (Friday) to control the crowd, then I don’t understand why the hands were on someone,” Keats said.
Keats said she had spoken to interim chief Steve Bell and planned to raise the issue further with police and the school board.
Familiar with today’s incident in Beatrice Delog. Asking why Ottawa police intervention is needed without major de-escalation. School action against young women who have been aggressively targeted for dress code violations also seems extremely inappropriate. The whole situation about.
– Catherine Keats (@catherinekitts) May 13, 2022
The story continues under the ad
The Conseil des écoles catholiques du Center-Est said in a statement in French that it “takes very seriously” the accusations against teachers who impose the blitz dress code, and sent two school staff to meet with students and staff.
The spokesman said the board and the school would “continue to have a dialogue” on the dress code to “ensure that all students have a positive, healthy and safe learning environment”.
Dumoulin and Lehouier said that while head of education Jason Dupuis apologized to students for the way the blitz was conducted, school staff had not yet apologized.
Students say that until an apology is made and significant changes to the dress code and its implementation are announced, they and other schools are planning a walk next Tuesday.
“We just want to know that our voices have been heard and that they will do something about it,” Leuier said. “Because it wasn’t right.”
– with files from Amanda Connolly from Global News
© 2022 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
Add Comment