HALIFAX, NS — Dalhousie University has recently announced that they will be collaborating with Halifax Regional Police to bring down the number of shoplifters in Halifax. This follows many stores in the area reporting higher rates of shoplifting following the COVID-19 pandemic. The HRP has declared they are taking this issue seriously, and have decided to focus their initiatives on low-income households, including students, declaring they are the most likely perpetrators of such heinous crimes.
This project will involve Dalhousie sending out a mass email to its students, detailing common techniques shoplifters use, encouraging students to not partake in such behaviors, and to report anyone else doing so. The HRP has expressed disappointment in Dalhousie’s participation, claiming they had to “do all the work” and “all [Dalhousie] did was send out an email, they didn’t even write the paragraph we asked them to!” Sentiments shared by many students during group projects.
The HRP has assured us that sharing these techniques will not encourage more shoplifters, but will raise awareness of this unlawful behavior in our community. An officer commented “Many people don’t understand that what they’re seeing is wrong. They think that allowing someone to steal, say, baby formula, is the moral option in these scenarios, and our community just needs a reminder that the law is in fact always the moral option.”
When asked about their interest in this project, a Dalhousie representative commented, “We want to ensure that our students are struggling to pay their tuition as much as possible.” This is just one of many steps Dalhousie has taken to make this goal a reality.
By Ryan Van De Wiel