Saskatoon police PSA showing gang member in wheelchair sends ableist message, disability advocates say

An image from a 2015 anti-gang awareness campaign by police in British Columbia is now drawing criticism over its use in a campaign in Saskatchewan.

On Monday, the Saskatoon Police Service officially launched its Drop Gangs initiative, which provides education and resources about the reality of gang life. 

By Thursday, people on social media were calling attention to an image on the Drop Gangs website showing a man in a wheelchair with the text, "You wanna roll like a gangster?" 

The word "roll" is emphasized in yellow, to highlight a play on "rolling with," or being involved with a gang, and rolling in a wheelchair.

The image was posted by Saskatoon police but not created by the police service.

"I think it really communicates something really damaging for people with disabilities, and people who use wheelchairs as a primary mode of transportation," said Dale Wilson, who is finishing her masters of disability studies at the University of Manitoba.

She criticized the use of the image in a tweet on Friday.

"It was just problematic in the way that it comes across as like, 'Oh, if you stay in the gang, you're going to end up in a wheelchair,' and that would be a terrible thing," she said.

"The reality is, if you live long enough in this world, you will develop a disability. And then the realities of ableism become very prevalent to you," said Wilson, referring to discrimination and social prejudice against people with disabilities and people who are perceived to be disabled.

Wilson added that even though the material was not originally produced by Saskatoon police, and has since been removed from its Drop Gangs website, it was concerning the image was posted in the first place.

"I think the lesson is, you know, look at your sources and examine how might someone in the community see this image."

Kayleigh Kazakoff was also among those who tweeted about the image, which she first spotted on a Reddit thread.

In a direct message to CBC News, she also called the message ableist, while recognizing the intent was to show "the life-altering possible effects of gang life."

"I can't speak to the efficacy of the rest of their campaign, but this message in particular was hard to see," said Kazakoff, who lives with chronic illness and intermittently uses a cane.