Pan-Am Games Civics Lab

It occurs to me that, with the Pan-Am +Games coming up, you +have a prime opportunity to do some hands-on learning about Toronto civics and +policing. (Those of you who did this lab during the G20 summit are excused. If +you are already at risk of police harassment, you are excused. If you've never +been stopped by a cop in your life, this exercise will determine 70% of your +grade.)

Your assignment: do some things that are completely within your rights and +harmless to others.

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Dress in lower-middle class drag. Put away the props and costumes of + authority: no suits, no loafers. Jeans, sneakers, t-shirts, jackets are all + in: things chosen as much for their wearability and anonymity as for their + looks. Break them in, if you can; you'll visibly break character if + everything is shop new.
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Keep quiet. Tell your family where you're going - for safety - but not + social media. If you have an assistant, tell him you're going out, but not + where you're going. Make it as hard as possible for anyone to connect you to + any authority or celebrity your day job gives you.
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Get a camera. The more visible, the better; you can rent one from Vistek for + a totally achievable number of dollars. Get a strap, too; carrying a camera + by hand is tiring.
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Go alone.
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Take a long, slow stroll along the Pan-Am Games' security perimeter.
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You will absolutely be stopped by the police Integrated Security Unit, either +through a Toronto officer or an RCMP officer. Remember, you are entirely within +your rights to be there, with a camera, walking. (You'll need the camera to put +yourself on the radar: if you're white, the police will largely ignore you. +Taking pictures is optional, but a lot of fun.)

It's important that you do this without the trappings of authority and +without witnesses. Be powerless. Put yourself at the mercy of the police you +enabled. Experience an unjustified police stop as someone who has no immediate +recourse.

That experience is no fun. It's in turns demeaning, terrifying, embarassing, +and disempowering. For some Torontonians, this is a daily +event.

Then come back and talk to me about the Toronto Police Service's carding +program.

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