The Canadian BDS Coalition condemns the use of excess force by the Peel Regional Police that resulted in the murder of Ejaz Choudry on Saturday, June 20, 2020.
According to his family Ejaz Choudry had mental health issues and they called the non-emergency line for help. Reports and videos show police barricaded the apartment, refused to let family members in, and, without waiting, immediately fired at least 5 rapid shots. See The video footage.
The Canadian BDS Coalition joins with the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), The Muslim Council of Peel (MCP), and The Urban Alliance of Race Relations (UARR) in demanding from Chief Nishan Duraiappah that the officer responsible for firing the bullets that killed Ejaz Choudry be taken off the force immediately.
We ask people to add your voice to NCCM call for Justice for Ejaz.
With the murder of Ejaz Choudry, the police killings of six indigenous people in Canada since April, the recent killing of Regis Korchinski-Paquet in Canada and George Floyd in the USA, it is a continous demonstration of police impunity that targets and kills racialized people in both in the US and Canada.
The Canadian BDS Coalition condemns the inherent racism in the police system and we stand in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and the call to
- end police brutality
- address systemic racism and injustice
- recognize that white supremacy underlies the bias, violence and brutality against Black, Indigenous and other racialized lives
- defund and demilitarize the police
- reallocate funding and resources to community-based programs
The Coalition recognizes the role the militarization of police plays in this blatant misuse of power, and condemns the training of Canadian police by Israeli security forces in Israel and Canada, and the elected officials and police leadership that funds and enables it.