Montreal, June 15, 2026 — The Ligue des droits et libertés (LDL) and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) strongly condemn the shocking acts of racism involving officers of the Montreal Police Service (SPVM) in Montréal-Nord. The LDL and CCLA are jointly calling for the establishment of an independent public inquiry commission, governed by the Act Respecting Public Inquiry Commissions, to investigate police racism and systemic racial profiling within the SPVM, and for an immediate end to the arbitrary practice of street checks.
Investigations conducted by police agencies, as well as existing complaint and oversight mechanisms, do not provide the necessary guarantees of independence and transparency to fully address the breach of trust that the public and directly affected communities have experienced with law enforcement. The recent appointment of an independent observer to oversee the SPVM’s investigation is also insufficient. A public inquiry commission is necessary, and its mandate must be determined in consultation with the communities that are victims of police racism and racial profiling.
“A public inquiry commission on police racism within the SPVM is necessary to shed full light on this phenomenon, which has persisted for decades, and to hear the voices of victims of racism and police violence, who are too often ignored by politicians. We must examine the systemic nature of this phenomenon, the police practices that enable it, and the concrete actions that political authorities must take,” states Lynda Khelil, spokesperson for the Ligue des droits et libertés.
Although the most recent allegations specifically concern the actions of police officers from a unit of Montréal-Nord’s PDQ 39, a thorough and public investigation must be conducted into the entire SPVM in order to address the systemic racism and racial profiling that exists within Montreal’s police force.
The recent public revelations of racist acts committed by police officers in Montréal-Nord come as no surprise to neighborhood residents, who have endured them for decades. Courts, researchers, community organizations, and victims of police racism have repeatedly denounced and documented alarming police practices affecting Black, Indigenous, Arab, and other racialized communities in Montreal. Recent court rulings have recognized racial profiling within police forces as a systemic problem, notably in the Luamba case currently before the Supreme Court of Canada (concerning traffic stops without cause) and the Lamontagne case before the Quebec Court of Appeal (concerning street checks).
“This is not an isolated incident,” says Harini Sivalingam, director of the Equality Program at the CCLA. “Communities that are victims of racial profiling have long spoken out against discriminatory treatment by law enforcement and violations of their rights.”
“These marginalized groups, just like the entire Montreal community, deserve an investigation that will identify and address the institutional failures, culture, and lack of accountability that allow this type of behavior and denial of rights to persist,” Ms. Sivalingam adds.
The LDL and the CCLA are also calling for an immediate ban on street checks and remind that a campaign asking for this ban and supported by more than 100 organizations has been underway in Quebec since February 2023. In June 2023, SPVM’s Chief Fady Dagher rejected a recommendation for a moratorium made by a team of independent researchers—a concrete, immediate action that would eliminate a documented source of systemic racial profiling and protect citizens.
“The City of Montreal and the Quebec Government must immediately put an end to the arbitrary practice of street checks. We cannot wait for a so-called ‘cultural shift’ within the SPVM,” said Lynda Khelil, spokesperson for the LDL. “The elected officials’ reactions of consternation following recent revelations of racist acts by Montréal-Nord’s police officers reveal a disconnect from the daily reality of racialized citizens who have been denouncing these situations for decades,” continued Ms. Khelil.
The LDL and the CCLA jointly call on provincial and municipal authorities, within their respective jurisdictions, to:
- Launch a Public Inquiry Commission into police racism and systemic racial profiling within the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM);
- Immediately ban the arbitrary practice of street checks, a documented source of systemic racial profiling.
About the Ligue des droits et libertés
Since 1963, the Ligue des droits et libertés (LDL) has influenced numerous government policies and bills, in addition to contributing to the creation of institutions dedicated to the defense and promotion of human rights. It regularly engages in public discourse to advance advocacy efforts and denounce human rights violations before government bodies at the local, national, and international levels. Its work in analysis, awareness-raising, and advocacy is essential to ensuring that human rights become the path toward a just and inclusive society for everyone. As a non-profit, independent, and non-partisan organization, the LDL aims to defend and promote the universality, indivisibility, and interdependence of the rights recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
À propos de l’association canadienne sur les libertés civiles
The CCLA is an independent, national, non-governmental and non-partisan organization that was founded in 1964 with a mandate to defend and foster the civil liberties, human rights, and democratic freedoms of all people across Canada. Our work encompasses advocacy, research, and litigation related to fundamental constitutional freedoms, the criminal justice system, equality rights, and privacy rights.
For information and interviews
Claude Rioux, Communications Officer, Ligue des droits et libertés
Mobile: 514-715-7727
E-mail: communications@liguedesdroits.ca
Alex Nanoff, Communications Officer, Canadian Civil Liberties Association
E-mail: media@ccla.org
Cell: 613.709.6318
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