Fort St. John massage school director faces $12,500 fine for discrimination

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — A Fort St. John massage school director has been ordered to pay more than $12,000 for discriminatory comments made towards a Muslim man who booked a massage appointment with her.

Joyce Middleton has been ordered to pay $12,500 to Majid Shahadat for improper conduct and “injury to his dignity, feelings, and self-respect,” according to an April 17th decision by BC’s Human Rights tribunal.

According to court documents, Shahadat, who has lived in Canada for 25 years, booked a massage appointment at Middleton’s business, the Northern School of Spa Therapies, in July 2019.

Later that night, Middleton contacted Shahadat requesting his credentials and asking that he certify that he was not Islamic, describing the religion as having earned a bad reputation for the “raping and killing of infidels in Canada and elsewhere.”

The email also stated that Middleton’s school rarely accepted clients from outside Fort St. John “for our own protection.”

Shahadat was reportedly shocked and hurt by the message, having never received a response like that from a reputable business.

Middleton later followed up with Shahadat, claiming the school wasn’t accepting new male clients in the interest of protecting its students, all of whom were women at the time.

She reportedly referred him to a male massage therapist.

In submitting his complaint, Shahadat said it was a shock for him to learn that people with viewpoints like Middleton’s exist in Canada and own businesses.

“I’ve actually had to work really, really hard to get to where I am with my company, with the people, with our friends,” Shahadat wrote.

“And the fact that all of that hard work just goes out the window simply because someone makes a call about what you are based on my colour, my religion, my ethnicity – that was what was really hurtful.”

Tribunal Member Devyn Cousineau found that Middleton had denied Shahadat service in part because she believed he was Islamic, despite no evidence beyond his name.

Middleton defended herself in a written letter to the tribunal that Cousineau said “deepened the extent of the harm to Mr. Shahadat,” and proved the extent of his human rights complaint.

According to Cousineau, Middleton’s letter “relied on misinformation from what appear to be far-right, anti-Muslim internet websites.”

The decision cites 11 examples, including Middleton demanding Shahadat denounce portions of the Qur’an, suggesting with no basis that Shahadat demanded “young girls be forced to give him a massage in a naked condition behind closed doors,” and submitting a hand-written note claiming “all Muslims are not terrorists, but all terrorists are Muslims.”

“It is unlikely that anything I say in this decision can convince Ms. Middleton that her beliefs are based on a profound misunderstanding about the Qur’an and Islam, the second-largest religion in the world,” Cousineau said.

“She is free to think these types of thoughts and even 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.”

Cousineau ruled in favour of Shahadat despite Middleton’s claim that he posed a safety risk to her and her students in response to his complaint.

“The defence [Middleton] seeks to rely on – that he posed a safety risk to their staff – is based solely on stereotypical beliefs about Muslim men, with no factual basis to suggest Mr. Shahadat posed any risk,” the decision reads.  

“This is an unjustified violation of section 8 of the Human Rights Code.”

In addition to the money Middleton was ordered to pay Shahadat, she was also ordered to cease contravening the Human Rights Code and avoid violating it again in the future.

Energeticcity.ca has contacted Middleton for comment.