Black RCMP officer says he was demoted after raising concerns over training course

Josh Hoffman · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 10, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 4 hours ago

An African Nova Scotian RCMP unit sergeant who created anti-racism workshops for his leader says helium was removed from his position after helium raised concerns astir intelligence spot rights erstwhile the inaugural helium headed was going to beryllium expanded.

Craig Smith, a Mountie for astir 3 decades, was described by the RCMP arsenic a driving unit down its African Canadian Experience workshop, but the 2 sides are disputing who owns the people material.

The quality began successful 2023. Smith present works for the RCMP successful nationalist recruitment.

"This past year, really, has astir apt been the astir stressful of my policing career," Smith said.

Smith, besides an author and historian, argues the store was created with worldly helium produced extracurricular of his RCMP job.

"I judge that I was sidelined for nary different crushed than the information that I said that I privation to beryllium compensated for my intelligence spot rights," Smith said.

Workshop evolved implicit a decade

Smith has spent astir fractional his vocation processing antithetic versions of what is present known arsenic the African Canadian Experience workshop.

In 2006, Smith published his 2nd book, You Had Better Be White By 6 a.m.: The African-Canadian Experience successful the RCMP. 

Smith said helium applied for what the RCMP calls secondary employment to instrumentality clip disconnected to constitute the book. He said his probe for this publication was adapted into the earliest mentation of the workshop. 

In 2008, 2 Black men were allegedly harassed by off-duty officers successful Digby, N.S., starring to respective recommendations astir however RCMP could amended its narration with Black residents, including a bid of workshops for officers. 

"I developed and designed it and delivered it," Smith said. That mentation of the people was the African Nova Scotian Experience Workshop. 

He was asked successful 2017 to grow the people from 1 time to 5 and to person a broader focus, which led to the ceremonial instauration of the African Canadian Experience store and portion that operated it, helium said.  He led that portion until the existent dispute.

The store took Smith each implicit the state and, arsenic it became much popular, helium said by 2022 the national authorities wanted the RCMP to marque it disposable to constabulary services crossed the country. 

"So it was going to grow," helium said. "I didn't deliberation it was just that my worldly beryllium utilized without my support and without maine being compensated for it." 

Employers ain employee's work, lawyer says

Employees don't person intelligence spot implicit the contented they make arsenic portion of their occupation with the objection of contractors and 3rd parties, according to an intelligence spot lawyer.

"Your leader volition ain each of the works that you make successful the people of your employment," said Catherine Lovrics, caput of trademark and copyright astatine Toronto-based ineligible steadfast Marks & Clerk.

RCMP declined requests to interrogation Smith's supervisors.

Assistant Commissioner Dennis Daley, Nova Scotia's commanding officer, said he's alert of Smith's concerns, but helium can't sermon it due to the fact that it is simply a unit matter.

"What I tin archer you is that I americium 100 per cent committed to the transportation of the African Canadian acquisition people and I look guardant to continuing to amended our employees," Daley said. 

Smith said his leader has removed each his worldly from the existent mentation of the course, which has been condensed from 5 to three days since helium left.   

He said it's contradictory for an instauration similar the RCMP to accidental they privation to code systemic racism and past bash what they've done.

Smith said helium built up this people that garnered nationalist attention, was attended by hundreds of officers crossed the state and gave racialized members a harmless spot to speech astir their acquisition and "all of a abrupt you privation to dismantle it."

"It makes nary consciousness whatsoever," helium said.

For much stories astir the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to occurrence stories wrong the Black assemblage — cheque out Being Black successful Canada, a CBC task Black Canadians tin beryllium arrogant of. You tin work much stories here.