Below are just some of the police encounters I have had over the last few years. What is below only represents a small fraction of what I have experienced. Sometimes the footage is lost to time or exist on other social media platforms.
It is essential to understand your legal rights and obligations when dealing with the police for several reasons.
Understanding legal rights and obligations is vital for personal safety, justice, and community relations.
Protection Against Abuse: Knowing your rights can help protect you from potential abuses of power and ensure you can assert your rights in encounters with law enforcement.
Informed Decision-Making: Awareness of your legal rights allows you to make informed decisions during interactions with the police, such as whether to consent to searches or answer questions.
Ensuring Fair Treatment: Understanding your rights helps promote fairness and accountability in policing. It empowers individuals to recognize when their rights are being violated and take appropriate action.
Attempting & Failing At Getting An Apology for Another Transphobic Incident: After three incidents of intentional transphobic conduct by the Niagara Regional Police Service (in St. Catharines), I confront a S.SGT with regards to their continued pattern of harassment and bigotry. As is often demonstrated, being a police officer means ZERO accountability and never apologizing (for negligence or malfeasance).
SECRECY, SURVEILLANCE, AND THE PUBLIC’S RIGHT TO KNOW: Inside the NRPS’s Secret $534,000 Technology Purchase
When Niagara Regional Police disclosed the purchase, remarkably little information accompanied the announcement. The public was informed that the expenditure had been approved and that the cost exceeded half a million dollars. Beyond that, almost nothing was provided.
On My Fight with the NRPS
Until now, I have carried this case largely on my own. I authored the original complaint. I survived the first major procedural hurdle. I researched and drafted a comprehensive response to the NRPS “defence”—a document prepared by a team of taxpayer-funded lawyers with decades of combined experience. I met the system where it stood, with…
JUSTICE ENDS WHERE POLICING BEGINS: The Shameful History of Policing The Gay and Trans Community in Canada
Policing reform is routinely framed as a matter of training, oversight, or inclusive language. None of this resolves the central contradiction exposed by decades of violence against trans people: policing is a system built on discretion, not equality. It decides who belongs, who is suspect, and whose suffering is credible.
Legal Consequences: Awareness of legal obligations can help individuals avoid unintentional violations that could lead to legal repercussions, such as arrest or charges.
Empowerment: Knowledge of legal rights empowers individuals, enhancing their confidence in navigating interactions with police and the broader legal system.
WHEN A PRIDE FLAG BECOMES A TARGET: The Crown V Chandler C. Robinson
A recent incident involving the vandalism of a Pride flag at a public elementary school in Thorold, led to charges against Chandler Robinson for mischief. While the act seems straightforward, it raises questions about underlying motives tied to anti-2SLGBTQQIA+ sentiments. This incident highlights how targeted actions can symbolize deeper societal issues and provoke essential discussions…
On The Myth of Canadian Exceptionalism
This is not an argument that Canada is Mississippi in 1964—but no society arrives at that point by accident. The same dynamics are visible here at home. They surface in the normalization of hateful rhetoric online and in public spaces across Canada, including here in Niagara. Those advancing this rhetoric often insist they are merely…
On Not Disappearing
I am not good at making lifelong friends. My record is uneven, marked by distance and missed chances. Going stealth would have only deepened that pattern. More importantly, it would have meant abandoning the mercy, empathy, and action shown by the people who stood beside me. I needed their proximity—not just their support, but their…
- WHEN A PRIDE FLAG BECOMES A TARGET: The Crown V Chandler C. Robinson
- SECRECY, SURVEILLANCE, AND THE PUBLIC’S RIGHT TO KNOW: Inside the NRPS’s Secret $534,000 Technology Purchase
- On the Failure of Escape
- The Belief Machine: PART 3-On The Hypocrisy of Belief
- The Belief Machine: PART 2-On The Business of Belief
Sabrina Constance 