Urban Battleground: The Policing of Dissent in Canada's Capital By: Stephen R. Worth (Hon. B.A.) A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies and Research in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of: Master of Arts Department of Law Carleton University Ottawa, Ontario July 30, 2010© Library and Archives Bibliotheque et 1*1 Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de l'6dition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-71718-9 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-71718-9 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par I'lnternet, preter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non- support microforme, papier, electronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. 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I+I Canada Abstract Current public order policing efforts seek to constitute activists as political subjects that can be categorized, ranked, and controlled in a fashion that undermines efforts to organize effective dissent. In this thesis I argue that these classification techniques target radical elements of social movements, pressuring other activists to distance themselves from these more 'dangerous' actors and practices. I analyze the experiences of activists with the Ottawa Police Service's (OPS) Major Event Liaison Team (MELT) both during the planning and the carrying out of protests. Using interview data from activists and the OPS, I offer an in-depth analysis of liaison policing strategies, surveillance, spatial control, and the conflation of protest and terrorism. Contrary to current scholarship that suggests public order policing has transitioned into a managerial and "soft-hat" approach, this thesis offers an empirically informed Marxian critique that instead finds that the policing of dissent is based on coercion, marginalization, and de- radicalization. i Acknowledgements I would first like to extend my thanks to the persons who agreed to be interviewed for this project, without their participation this analysis would have been unattainable. Thanks as well to Gulden Ozcan for opening doors for me. For his guidance and confidence, and for always pushing me to take one step further, I thank Dr. George Rigakos. My thanks to Dr. Neil Gerlach and Dr. Aaron Doyle for acting as examiners on my thesis defence panel, and for their valuable input. To my parents for their unwavering support in all my pursuits, thank you. Finally, my deepest thanks go to Steph for her love and support, and for her seemingly endless patience. ii Table of Contents Introduction 1 1. The Public Order Policing Literature: A Critique 4 2. Theoretical Concepts and Terms 19 a. Re-Conceptualizing Liaison Policing 19 b. Surveillance and Counter-Surveillance 26 c. Territorializing and Re-Territorializing Dissent 30 d. Protest as Terror and the Logic of Security 33 3. Methods of Inquiry 37 a. Access 38 b. Structure of Investigation 41 4. The Birth of MELT 44 5. Re-conceptualizing Liaison Policing 52 a. Coercive Planning 52 b. Coercive Deployment 72 c. Resistance 84 6. Surveillance and Counter-Surveillance 90 7. Territorializing and Re-Territorializing Dissent 109 a. Shaping the Urban Terrain 111 i. Fences 111 ii. Protest Pens 114 iii. Rerouting 116 b. Off-Shore Summits 121 8. Protest as Terror and the Logic of Security 129 a. Conflating Protest and Terror 130 b. Spying on Students 138 Conclusion 149 Appendices 154 Bibliography 157 iii 1 Introduction Policing agencies have historically struggled to create an effective strategy that allows them to police protests and demonstrations without resorting to violence. Recent trends in public order policing show that a liaison model, that focuses on communication, negotiation, and information gathering prior to events has become the preferred method for policing demonstrations. In this thesis, I argue that current public order policing efforts seek to constitute activists as political subjects that can be categorized, classified, ranked, and controlled in a fashion that undermines efforts to organize effective dissent against the dominant social order. Activists and affinity group members are policed according to their willingness to conduct themselves in ways policing agencies consider to be acceptable conduct, which unsurprisingly involves minimal disruption to public order. The radical elements of social movements are targeted by policing agencies as dangerous, and activists are pressured to distance themselves from these more radical actors and practices. I analyze the experiences of Ottawa activists with the Ottawa Police Service both during the planning and the carrying out of demonstrations and protests. Using interview data from Ottawa activists and affinity group members, as well as with members of the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) who are or were tasked with managing the public order unit,11 offer an in-depth analysis of how the unit's strategic changes were initiated and received within activist communities. By focusing on activists, I hope to avoid a police-centric and post-hoc approach that now dominates research on public order policing. 1 Formerly known as the Major Event Liaison Team or MELT. Spitzer, in his valuable contribution to a Marxian theory of deviance, suggested that a "problem population" is one whose "behaviour, personal qualities and/or position threaten the social relations of production in capitalist societies."2 These populations are managed as deviants by the state because of their ability to impede the maintenance and growth of the capitalist system, thereby disrupting class rule.3 To study activists and affinity groups is, then, to study deviance. The policing of social movements should be situated within this larger project of marginalizing deviant populations, and by focusing on the deviant instead of the managing entity, we can begin to shed light on true nature and efficacy of the policing of dissent. Although the topic of this thesis is public order policing, it is distanced from traditional policing literature by the fact that it is not police-centric. Conceptually, this project seeks not to accomplish an understanding of the policing of activists, but rather of activists being policed. This involves an analysis of the policing strategies utilized against activists prior to as well as during protests and demonstrations. Current policing efforts show a reliance on liaison units, which seek to govern the conduct of activists and de- radicalize demonstrators through the collection of information. A central part of this information gathering is done through video surveillance, which has become a primary tool of public order units. Importantly, these tactics and strategies do not supplant police violence at protests. Some Ottawa activists continue to experience violent policing measures at demonstrations. In addition, permeating at all levels of public order policing, from pre-event planning and intelligence gathering to forceful treatment of demonstrators, is the logic of security. The post 9/11 security apparatus has rendered all 2 S. Spitzer, "Toward a Marxian Theory of Deviance" (1975) 22(5) Social Problems 638 at 642. 3 Ibid, at 642-43. instances where people gather in large numbers in public a potential "security risk". For protests and demonstrations, this has resulted in an increased militarization of public space, where city centers are temporarily turned into urban battlefields. The goal of this thesis is to provide a Canadian analysis of public order policing that is both critical and theoretical, and which serves as a starting point for future investigations. Chapter 1: The Public Order Policing Literature: A Critique Before a critique of the extant public order policing literature can be provided, it is best to define public order policing and outline the well documented shift in policing strategies from repressive force to negotiation/consultation. Events of public order vary from the political to the celebratory. Public order units are tasked with ensuring order is kept during such divergent events as anti-war protests and Stanley Cup celebrations.