There’s a video from the Fairy Creek anti-logging demonstrations on Vancouver Island that shows police unleashing pepper spray at close range onto a crowd of activists. At one point, an RCMP officer rips the masks off of two women, shown clearly on the tape. Other witnesses from the scene allege even worse – that officers were kicking and dragging activists, and aiming pepper spray into their mouth, eyes and private areas.

As reporter Cherise Seucharan finds out, the avenues available to the public to hold RCMP accountable don’t seem to be working when it comes to these reports of escalating police violence at Fairy Creek. The courts, the police complaints system, and even the media have not been able to stop RCMP from acting in ways that have been condemned by experts, civil rights lawyers and by the RCMP’s own watchdog. 

This episode is sponsored by Douglas, Squarespace, Article and CNN Total Recall.