Carleton University’s Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice (ICCJ) announced they will be ending all student placements with police and prison authorities starting in the 2021-22 school year.
Typically, the ICCJ provides a total of 80 placements in a year, with 22 students spending their placements with the RCMP, Correctional Service of Canada (CSC), the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) or the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre (OCDC), all of which will no longer be offered.
The ICCJ cites their decision as a response to the recent mobilizations across the globe in support of racial justice, and the slow and uncooperative responses from policing and prison agencies addressing discrimination and racism.
In a statement released on Aug. 11, the ICCJ acknowledges the role of criminal justice institutions as an essential component in addressing systemic racism, but adds these institutions have “demonstrated their imperviousness to reform.”
Jeffrey Monaghan, an associate professor at the ICCJ, said their responsibility to continue placing students into these situations raises questions and concerns.
“Part of this call is signalling that we are not comfortable with the current arrangement and we’re not comfortable with the status quo,” Monaghan said, adding there are several serious problems with policing and the police’s use of force.
The ICCJ’s decision to cut ties with policing institutions upset some students, who were worried about the impact of the decision on student opportunities.
Emily Purcell, a recent Carleton criminology graduate who once qualified for placement opportunities with the ICCJ, started a petition calling to reverse the department’s decision. The petition, which points out that “no students were consulted prior to making this decision,” has more than 1,000 signatures so far.
“It’s really important to keep sending and encouraging these intelligent students with their educational background,” Purcell said. “By simply diverting students away from it, I think it’s kind of an issue in that I don’t think they’re going to be dismantled anytime soon.”
Monaghan said the ICCJ placements have a variety of great options—such as government, non-government, and quasi-government organizations that can also provide rich learning experiences that complement the program.
“If it affects people at all, it’s actually going to be in the positive, in my opinion. We’re going to have a much more plural, diverse placement per member. We’re going to have more options and opportunities for students,” he said.
For Carley Pompa, a second-year criminology student at Carleton, this decision is disappointing.
“I just feel like it’s definitely hitting hard on students that took criminology to go into law enforcement and that type of stuff,” Pompa said. She added that many students, including herself, chose Carleton for its placement opportunities.
Pompa said she wanted to do her placement with the RCMP for a research project, but because of the recent changes, that is no longer possible.
Purcell said she feels the decision will take opportunities away from students, but also said she agrees with the other commitments the ICCJ has made.
In addition to cutting ties with policing institutions, the ICCJ has committed to a number of other changes to address systemic racism. This includes four new bursaries for Black, Indigenous and racialized students or students engaged in social justice initiatives addressing racism and colonialism.
The ICCJ also appointed a committee to address the needs of students of colour within the program, such as through mentorship, as well as revising the curriculum to address anti-Black racism and decolonization.
Featured image by Pascale Malenfant.
