On Feb. 25, 2025, Justice Minister and Attorney General Arif Virani released, Toward Transformative Change: an Implementation Plan for Canada’s Black Justice Strategy. The plan sets a ten-year framework to reduce the over-representation of Black people in the criminal justice system. The non-profit DESTA Black Community Network was among the groups that contributed to the strategy through community-led consultations.
Kassandra Kernisan, executive director of DESTA, underscored that one of the main challenges they faced was the pushback, as many people doubted the initiative.
“A lot of the community was skeptical, so we kind of had to navigate around that because the community does get consulted, quite a bit, for many things and often doesn’t see change,” Kernisan said to the CONTACT. “I think what worked in our favour and allowed people to open up is that we made this an opportunity for the community to come together and share an exchange. We focused more on how we can continue to support each other, help each other and grow, and I think that allowed people to open up a lot more.”
A report by the Canadian government shows that Black people are disproportionately represented in the criminal justice system as victims, accused or convicted of crime.
Kernisan explained that there are not enough resources for the Black community. She added that people may not be aware of the free and subsidized services available to them, including legal and mental health support. She said that this strategy is significant for the Black community in Montreal, as it is rare for platforms to highlight Black voices, specifically when speaking about justice.
“Typically, historically and currently, we’ve been unfairly targeted and unfairly treated, so there’s not true justice in the true sense of the word for members of the Black community,” Kernisan said.
She emphasized the importance of reintegration programs, such as the one at DESTA. The conditions people face after incarceration, such as limited access to housing, employment, and support, make it difficult to stay out of prison. Without these programs, the odds are against them, and it becomes nearly impossible for someone to break the cycle.
Kernisan added that another major challenge when working on Canada’s Black Justice Strategy’s Implementation Plan was completing all research and reporting within the limited timeframe. The Engagement and consultation deadline was from Sept.1 to Oct. 20, 2023, while the summary report due date was on Nov. 3, 2023. She also noted the insufficiency of the resources while undertaking the research.
“The issue with such tight timelines and limited resources was not being able to reach and consult as many people as we could have had more time and resources, so this significantly impacted the sample size for our research. Our sample size consisted of approximately 80 people. Despite that, however, we got very pertinent data and input from the community,” Kernisan said. “I think in an ideal world, I would have liked to see more time and resources given to this type of consultation because it’s so important, and there’s so many levels to it.”
She explained that there needs to be more consultations on the plan. She also spoke with other organizations, and they mutually felt that the time they got was insufficient. She said that DESTA partnered with the Black Community Resource Centre (BCRC) with John David as the lead researcher from their team. They received an extension for the project, yet still felt that it was inadequate.
“I think that had we had more time, and this was for all the organizations, we would have been able to reach more people and get a little more data. But I think the data that we did get was good, and it just served to reinforce, I think, what a lot of people already knew,” Kernisan said.
Kernisan explained that there are many reasons why Black people are overrepresented in the criminal justice system. She said that systemic racism is the leading cause of the issue.
“There are things that need to change at the level of the community and resources that need to be provided for sure, but there’s a big problem at the level of the system that isn’t being addressed, or people are avoiding to address, and that’s really how our community is treated in the face of the police and legal administration,” Kernisan said.
She said DESTA has an employability program, which also supports the reintegration program, helping people meet their parole requirements.
“Because oftentimes what you see is called recidivism. It’s the rate at which someone who has already been in prison is released and then returns to the system. It’s very high, particularly among the Black community, because there are not those resources and because the way the system is set up, it’s set up so that that cycle happens,” Kernisan said.
She added that through DESTA’s various programs, people can change their lives for the better.
“It’s programs like DESTA offers through our reintegration, reentry program and social justice program that allow these participants to get out of that cycle. We’re currently serving about 60 participants in different areas, whether it’s housing, employability, legal support or mental health support.” Kernisan said.
She added that it is crucial to have more resources and organizations providing justice for Black people. The implementation plan will support Black communities through community-based interventions, including aid for formerly incarcerated individuals, such as DESTA’s reintegration efforts through employment programs, housing assistance, and mentorship. Additionally, it will promote police and legal system reforms, as well as mental health and trauma-informed approaches.
“We’re here trying to balance the playing field with limited resources, but I think that putting these types of reports and data out really helps create a case for the need for this type of work and reform. First and foremost, there has to be a systemic change for us to see real change,” Kernisan said.
Department of Justice Canada officials responded via email regarding the timeline organizations, such as DESTA, received.
They stated that in the fall of 2023, 12 Black-led community-based organizations led engagement and consultations in nine provinces and territories. Community consultations and engagements were conducted by the Steering Group’s Framework.
The framework included information and recommendations from studies and reports on the overrepresentation of Black people in Canada’s justice system. It highlighted gaps and challenges within the system.
“The goal of the community engagement process was to validate and update this information. This engagement period was set at two months to gather timely input. Almost 1,500 people participated in these community consultations. The community’s consultation and engagement reports informed the Steering Group’s recommendations to Justice Canada,” wrote Katelyn Moores, Communications Advisor for Justice Canada.
