durhamregion.com This Week | Thursday, May 12, 2022 | 10 fare," Sahak says. "We're becoming more mindful of our responsibility to the community. This should have been done from the very beginning." In Durham Region, 11 per cent of the population identifies as Black. In 2021, 14.8 per cent of children in the care of DCAS were Black. The Durham Model will focus on prevention and early intervention to reduce the number of Black children and youth entering the child welfare system. When Black families are referred to Durham CAS, they will immediately be connected to Ifarada for advocacy, support and intervention. "I'm hoping that through this program that we can definitely create a sense of hope for them. So they know that, if there's difficulties in their family, that contacting CAS, contacting agencies means that there's hope," Perry- man says. "There's no feeling of, I'm going to lose my children or something more disastrous will happen to my family, or more traumatic." Fear of the child welfare system is something Nia understands. The Durham resident was investigated by child welfare about two years ago while living in another region. Nia is a nickname, her real name is not being used to protect the identity of her children. Nia says the report to child welfare was the result of one of her children "acting out" at school. She believes she was "racially profiled as being a bad parent" because she is a single mother who is Black. "The teacher ... I don't think they wanted to get to know me or understand (my child's) issues. I think they looked at me and thought, this is not a good parent," she says. "Do I think they would have called CAS on me if I was white? No I don't." While Nia's file with Children's Aid is closed, she is still experiencing fear and anxiety. If one of her children misbehaves at school, she worries about finding a social worker at her door. "It's changed me," she says. The overrepresentation of Black children and youth in child welfare is not unique to Durham -- in 2018, eight of the 27 Children's Aid Societies in Ontario had an overrepresentation. Sahak says other agencies are watching closely as the Durham Model is implemented. "There's a lot of interest in this. There's a number of agencies looking at us in terms of how will this be rolled out? What will the outcomes be?" A third-party evaluator will follow the progress of the Durham Model and assess outcomes. DCAS will provide updates to the community through events like the annual Building Bridges Community Consultation Series as well as updates on the Durham Model website. DCAS has also introduced a new policy to ensure "trite reporting" doesn't harm Black families. Trite reporting refers to people making a report to Children's Aid for things that are not a child protection concern -- an occur- rence that often disproportionally impacts Black families. "It's not lost on us that our whole system has been weaponized," Sahak says. A 2019 document from the Ontario Association of Children's Aid Societies to help Black families navigate child welfare, offers examples of trite reports from schools. These include a parent arriving late to pick up their child, a child using dramatic language such as "my mom is going to kill me,' or a child's lunch containing food a teacher is not familiar with. DCAS recently introduced a Trite Reporting Policy which requires workers to document the race of the child and family being referred, "ask questions to seek clarification of the motivation or rationale for the call to the society, report any concerns about trite reporting to a supervisor and educate the person who made the report about the impact of trite reporting. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Work has been underway for several years at DCAS to address systemic issues relating to child welfare in Durham's Black community. In 2016 DCAS formed a community advisory council to make suggestions and recommendations related to child welfare issues in Durham's Black and oppressed communities. In 2020, DCAS welcomed funding for a race equity practice frame-work. The launch of Kasserian Ingera -- The Durham Model is the latest development in this work. NEWS Continued from page 3 'THERE'S A NUMBER OF AGENCIES LOOKING AT US IN TERMS OF HOW WILL THIS BE ROLLED OUT?' SCAN THE CODE to read more Whitby news online. The teacher... I don't think they wanted to get to know me or understand (my child's) issues. I think they looked at me and thought, this is not a good parent. - Nia One suspect has been caught and police are looking for a second one following a robbery in Whitby. Three victims, boys ranging in age from 12 to 14, were robbed of their cellphones while they were fishing in Pringle Creek on Monday, April 18 at about 2 p.m., Durham Regional Police reported. The incident happened in the Manning Road and Garden Street area, police said. The victims were approached by two males, who threatened to harm the victims and demanded their phones, police noted. After getting the phones, the two suspects fled in a vehicle. Police canvassed the area and with the help of the public, arrested one of the suspects, police added. Colton Cervoni, 19, of Bagot Street in Whitby, has been charged with three counts of robbery. He was released on an undertaking. The investigation is ongoing, and police continue to look for a second suspect. If anyone has further information, they are encouraged to contact Det. Ormonde of the Central West Division Criminal Investigations Bureau at 1- 888-579-1520, ext. 1827. Anonymous information can be sent to Durham Regional Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.durhamregionalcrimestoppers.ca. ONE SUSPECT CAUGHT AFTER WHITBY STREET ROBBERY CRIME FIND MORE LOCAL EVENTS AT DURHAMREGION.COM