Quebec has turned down funds aimed at addressing systemic racism in the courts

MONTREAL — The Quebec government has turned down federal funding aimed at combating systemic racism in the criminal justice system, saying it doesn’t agree with the program’s approach.

The federal government first offered $6.64 million in funding to provinces and territories in 2021 to improve fairness in the courts. Spread out over five years, the money was aimed at addressing the overrepresentation of Black people in the criminal justice system by promoting the use of race and cultural assessments before sentencing.

These assessments — known as Impact of Race and Culture Assessments, or IRCAs — analyze how a convicted person’s experience of systemic racism contributed to their criminal charges.

While most provinces have accepted the federal funding aimed at supporting defendants or