After years of waiting, Quebec’s Black and racialized communities have secured a pivotal victory in their fight against discriminatory policing practices. The Quebec Superior Court has approved a class-action lawsuit against the City of Montreal alleging systemic racial profiling by police during traffic stops.
The lawsuit, approved by Justice Michel Yergeau on Tuesday, could potentially include thousands of people who were subjected to what plaintiffs describe as discriminatory street checks and vehicle stops between July 2018 and January 2024.
“This decision validates what our communities have been saying for decades,” said Dan Philip, president of the Black Coalition of Quebec, who I spoke with following the court’s announcement. “People have suffered psychological trauma, lost jobs, and faced humiliation because of racial profiling. Now they’ll have their day in court.”
The class action seeks $5,000 in damages for each person stopped by Montreal police without reasonable cause, plus additional compensation for those who experienced particularly egregious violations of their rights.
Joseph-Christopher Luamba, the lead plaintiff, described to me being stopped by police more than a dozen times while driving, despite having committed no traffic violations. “Every time I got behind the wheel, I felt afraid,” Luamba said. “Not of accidents, but of being targeted again simply because of my skin color.”
The lawsuit builds upon a landmark 2022 Quebec Court of Appeal ruling that declared random police stops without cause unconstitutional. That decision recognized the “disproportionate impact” of such stops on racial minorities.
Evidence supporting the claim includes a 2019 independent report commissioned by the Montreal police service itself, which found that Black and Indigenous people were between four and five times more likely to be stopped by officers than white people. The report, conducted by researchers from McGill University, analyzed data from over 100,000 street checks.
“The statistics are unambiguous,” said Fo Niemi, executive director of the Center for Research-Action on Race Relations. “We’ve documented hundreds of cases where individuals were pulled over for ‘driving while Black’ or subjected to checks that white citizens simply don’t experience.”
Montreal police have implemented policy changes since the 2019 report, including mandatory data collection on stops and expanded anti-bias training. However, community advocates maintain these measures haven’t substantially reduced racial disparities.
I reviewed court filings that detail several disturbing incidents, including one involving a Black doctor who was pulled over three times in a single week while driving his luxury vehicle. In another case, a 17-year-old student was allegedly handcuffed and detained during a routine traffic stop with no explanation provided.
The Montreal police service (SPVM) declined to comment specifically on the lawsuit, citing ongoing litigation. However, a spokesperson provided a statement noting that the force “remains committed to addressing concerns about bias in policing and improving relationships with diverse communities.”
Legal experts say this case could establish important precedents for holding police departments accountable for systemic discrimination.
“What makes this case particularly significant is that it’s not about individual ‘bad apples’ but about patterns and practices that create discriminatory outcomes regardless of individual officer intent,” explained Tamara Thermitus, former president of Quebec’s human rights commission. “It’s about changing systems, not just disciplining individual officers.”
The City of Montreal has 30 days to appeal the certification. If the case proceeds, individuals who believe they qualify as class members will be able to register through a process established by the plaintiffs’ legal team.
Community organizations are now mobilizing to identify potential class members and document their experiences. The Black Coalition of Quebec has created a hotline and is organizing information sessions in neighborhoods with large Black and minority populations.
“This lawsuit is about justice, but it’s also about dignity,” said Alain Babineau, a former RCMP officer who now advocates against racial profiling with the Red Coalition. “No one should feel criminalized simply for existing in public space.”
For many community members, this legal victory represents a validation of experiences that have long been dismissed.
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