What I was saying is that when I began to work on the project, I knew, of course, that there had been previous studies and that some of them had dealt directly with the problem of integrating women into the RCMP. However, I had no idea of the present situation or the measures that had been taken to remedy the problems discovered in those studies.
The parties to the agreement said that harassment was still prevalent and that I would receive 1,000 claims. I received more than 3,000 claims and know for a fact that many women who are being harassed even today did not file a claim. This would indicate how profound the problem is.
But there are more preoccupying issues: the harassment is systemic and results from a very toxic culture; the problem is so important that it puts in question the ability of the RCMP to truly accomplish its mission; and the harassment was so violent that it put in peril the health and security of thousands of women over a 30-year period.
Many women the assessors interviewed had been diagnosed with serious psychological injury, including major depressive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks and substance dependence. Claimants also reported a real lack of trust in the RCMP itself; a lack of trust in the men who work with them; feelings of isolation; withdrawal from social activities, friendships and sexual relations; humiliation; lack of self-esteem; and lack of confidence. When you look at all of that and say that it is prevalent in more than 1,000 women, you would think you're in a crisis situation.
It was also concerning that the events described in these claims were not all historical, overtaken by time or overtaken by updated policies. While the claims process did not review conduct that occurred after May 30, 2017, some claimants disclosed that they were still experiencing similar incidents despite the initiatives taken by the RCMP to address gender- and sexual-orientation-based harassment.
Despite numerous investigations and reviews, harassment remains present in many areas of the organization. Worse still, disrespectful conduct has been perpetrated and condoned at every level of the hierarchy.
I often heard that there were many good members trying to do a good job in a difficult environment, and I'm sure this is true and that many members are well intentioned and trying to do the right thing. But the reality is that even honourable members and well-intentioned leaders have been required to conform to or at least accept the underlying culture, which they have for the most part had to adopt to succeed themselves. The leadership and membership have all suffered from that.
I think there is a certain cognitive dissonance in the RCMP. Why? Because there are a lot of well-intentioned people who believe themselves to be ethical; hence, systemic racism or systemic gender-based disadvantages and discrimination cannot exist in the RCMP. What they rely on is the “few bad apples” justification. This approach allows an organization to continue as it is, relying on the impression that simply finding these bad apples will solve the issue. They are not willing to recognize the systemic and cultural nature of sexual harassment and gender- and sexual-orientation-based harassment in the RCMP.
I have a list of the men who were accused of harassment and a list of those who were found to be responsible for harassment in the various grievance processes. These aren't a few bad apples. These are hundreds of bad apples.
Based on the 3,086 claims that I have personally read, and the 644 interviews that I, with the help of two other assessors, conducted, I concluded that the RCMP is imbued with a toxic culture that tolerates misogyny and homophobia within its ranks and even within its leadership.
The culture of the RCMP portrayed by the claimants is one of constant sexism, homophobia, gossip and backbiting, where reprisals for rocking the boat and rumour mongering flourish. While many claimants took care [Technical difficulty—Editor]—
