New Brunswick woman arrested, pinned by cops for entering store while mask exempt
(www.youtube.com)
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Meh, fake outrage. The police here were more than reasonable. Freedom not to wear a mask is also freedom for the store to decline her business. They didn't just jump her, they tried to reason with her and she escalated it to try to make a sensational video.
If that store won't respect her rights, then she can speak with her cash and stop shopping there. That's how capitalism and free enterprise work.
This woman has a medical exemption. The business is licensed under the province and is bound by laws and regulations including:
New Brunswick Human Rights Code
Prohibited grounds of discrimination 2.1For the purposes of this Act, the prohibited grounds of discrimination are (a) race, (b) colour, (c) national origin, (d) ancestry, (e) place of origin, (f) creed or religion, (g) age, (h) physical disability, (i) mental disability, (j) marital status, (k) family status, (l) sex, (m) sexual orientation, (n) gender identity or expression, (o) social condition, and (p) political belief or activity.
Discrimination in accommodation and services 6(1) No person, directly or indirectly, alone or with another, by himself, herself or itself or by the interposition of another, shall, based on a prohibited ground of discrimination, (a) deny to any person or class of persons any accommodation, services or facilities available to the public, or (b) discriminate against any person or class of persons with respect to any accommodation, services or facilities available to the public.
You know what, if I had a real medical exemption, I'd carry a nice letter from my doctor saying that I do. Not why, that part is private, just that it's legit. It's an easy way to avoid problems. Do you know what else I'd do? In the interest of keeping things private, I'd call the store ahead of time, explain the situation and ask them how they'd like me to proceed. I'd give my money to the stores willing to accommodate me.
On the other hand, avoiding problems wasn't her goal was it? Causing a scene and filming it to generate fake outrage is what she wanted, not goods from the store. She isn't a martyr, she's an attention seeking bitch.
As for the act you listed, her recourse there is civil or a human rights tribunal. Absent proof or evidence of her condition, the business had every right to refuse her and ask her to leave.
This isn't a bad idea. It's a courteous gesture that can help avoid problems. But the law doesn't require it. As the woman says she hasn't had issues at other stores. Notice and manners or not, the onus is on the store to provide reasonable accommodation.
Perhaps. Perhaps also the store employee and the police are that as well and beyond. The police claim she took a swing at them but this is not on video. There is a picture of the police on top of her outside of the store.
This is what I found about the law as interpreted by the NB Human Rights Commission (BTW human rights tribunals are not final decisions and can have their decisions be over ruled in civil court):
"The New Brunswick Human Rights Act does not prevent service providers from requiring patrons to wear a face mask. However, should a patron be unable to wear a face mask due to a mental or physical disability, the patron has a duty to inform the service provider of their inability to do so. Once the service provider is advised of same, the service provider has a duty to accommodate to the point of undue hardship.
If a service provider, however, requires medical documentation to support that the patron cannot wear a mask due to a mental or physical disability, the patron needs to provide it. The medical documentation would need to set out that for medical reasons, the patron is unable to wear a community face mask or any other type of mask. The service provider’s duty to accommodate would be on hold until such documentation has been provided. Requests for medical documentation beyond this may not suspend the service provider’s duty to accommodate until it has been provided.
Even though the patron cannot wear a mask for medical reasons, they must continue to follow recommendations from the New Brunswick Chief Medical Officer such as following physical distancing rules, coughing into their sleeve, hand washing, etc."
I'm unsure of the NB HRC's interpretation of a service provider requiring medical documentation, if this applies to any service provider or only to service providers that in providing their service would normally require medical documentation. On the face of it it looks like you are correct that in NB proof of exemption is required.