Aamjiwnaang chief encouraged by Sarnia police since officer assigned to First Nation

It's been roughly two years since Tyler Callander has been on the job in Aamjiwnaang First Nation.

He's a Sarnia Police Service constable who's been with the force 16 years — serving in roles such as general patrol, detective and crisis negotiator. Most recently, in 2023, Callander was hired as its first-ever dedicated community liaison officer for the neighbouring First Nation.

Unlike most Indigenous communities in Ontario, Sarnia's municipal police handles law enforcement on the reserve.

The First Nation is an Anishinaabe band at the south end of the southwestern Ontario border city of Sarnia by the St. Clair River. It consists of roughly 2,500 band members with around 1,000 people living there.

Aamjiwnaang Chief Janelle Nahmabin says seeing a familiar "friendly face" has helped break down walls around policing within her community.

"It's been a challenging relationship going back a few years leading up to where we are now," she said. "To work on that relationship, it does take trust and time and dedication."

Nahmabin says Callander is building a good rapport with people who feel safe going to him with questions and concerns.

The officer has his own office in the community centre and frequently attends events.

"All in all, like the past few years has absolutely been an improvement with our relationship with the Sarnia police and we're happy that he's here."

Response times, traffic concerns

According to Nahmabin, who's been in leadership roles within the community for the past several years, she says the biggest prior complaints to the dedicated officer were police response times, and traffic concerns like speeding.

"Irresponsible or dangerous driving, but the response time or … no police being able to show up. I've heard that several times. But now we are working out of a better place now and we'll just continue to build that relationship and build that trust with the Sarnia police."

Callander says he's noticed a big difference in how he's received over the past two years on the job.

"I obviously came to Aamjiwnaang [before] for a lot of police calls and things like that. And there were times when the police — not every time, but sometimes — they weren't really welcomed and you weren't getting a lot of cooperation and things like that," he said.

Calling it intimidating at first, Callander, who's not Indigenous, says he has been well received from the very first band council meeting he attended.

"They were all very positive. To hear that from the start, I'm like, 'OK … This is really going to work.'"

Callander says he applauds the community for showing patience with him as he continues to learn more about Aamjiwnaang culture.

"I don't want to say it was surprising, but it was just more of my ignorance of not knowing."

Callander says he often brings his two elementary school-aged children to events on the reserve to try and illustrate his commitment to building relationships and breaking down any barriers.

"A lot of people associate the police with the government, right? And there's obviously been a lot of friction … throughout the years … I keep that kind of stuff in mind."

Recently, Callander says he was summoned to the Aamjiwnaang daycare because a young boy had drawn a picture of him and his unique police vehicle — which is decorated with Indigenous artwork from a local artist. 

"It kind of validates what I'm doing. Not to say that that wouldn't have happened before, but … to see that that's taking place — and having a front row seat to it again — would be a good example [of a positive impression]."