Former B.C. massage school ordered to pay $12k for discrimination - Vancouver Sun

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Majid Shahadat was denied access to a service because of his religion, said the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal in its decision


Published Apr 22, 2024 • Last updated 1 day ago • 2 minute read

B.C. Human Rights Tribunal

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A former Northern B.C. massage school has been ordered to pay $12,500 for Islamophobic claims against a Muslim man.

In January 2019, Majid Shahadat, who identifies as Muslim and has lived in Canada for 25 years, booked a lymphatic massage treatment online with the Northern School of Spa Therapies in Fort St. John, said the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal decision issued on April 17.


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That night, the director of the school, Joyce Middleton, wrote him an email requesting “credentials” and asking him to “certify you are not of the Islamic faith, which as you know has earned a bad reputation for raping and killing of infidels in Canada and elsewhere.”

Three days later, she sent a second email saying they are not accepting “new male clients that we do not know” because “we have to protect our students, who happen to be all girls at this time.” She referred him to another male massage therapist.

“As a result of Ms. Middleton’s discriminatory views, Mr. Shahadat was denied access to a service ordinarily available to the public, based on his religion, place of origin, ancestry, and colour,” said tribunal member Devyn Cousineau in the decision. “This denial was a violation of his dignity and an affront to B.C.’s commitment to an equitable society.”

Middleton did not participate in the hearing, but submitted a written statement.

In her previous submissions to dismiss Shahadat’s application, Middleton argued she was not racist, but was afraid of Shahadat.


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In the decision, she said she was entitled to protect herself and the “young girls” who work at the school.

She said her risk assessment was based on “world news, police reports, country statistics, excerpts directly from the Qur’an,” including references to “evidence of Islamists killing, raping and torturing Nigerian women and children over Christmas 2023.”

To justify her assessment that Shahadat posed a potential risk to her and her students, Middleton relied on “misinformation from what appear to be far-right, anti-Muslim, internet websites,” said Cousineau, and relied on the stereotype of vilification of Muslim people with no factual basis.

Cousineau said it is apparent Middleton truly believes the Qur’an promotes violence against women, children and non-Muslims and she is free to hold these views “as repugnant as others might find them.

“However, if she wants to run a business in British Columbia that serves the public, she cannot use those discriminatory views to decide who she will serve,” she said.

She ordered the school and Middleton to pay $10,000 for injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect and another $2,500 for improper conduct for exposing Shahadat to further discrimination and inflammatory anti-Muslim propaganda in her submissions and for threatening to sue him in B.C. Supreme Court.

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