26 Feb, 2024

Respect for pronouns is a matter of human rights

2024-02-26T16:03:27-08:00February 26, 2024|Tags: , |

Respect for one’s gender identity is a basic human right.

Gender identity and gender expression are protected characteristics in the BC Human Rights Code. This means that employers, landlords, service providers, and other duty-bearers must not discriminate against someone due to their gender identity or […]

25 Jan, 2024

Accessibility and Inclusive Design

2024-01-25T10:25:39-08:00January 25, 2024|Tags: , , , |

People with disabilities encounter many barriers to accessing public spaces. It can be tempting to identify a person’s disability as the reason for the barriers they encounter. In fact, however, it is often the choices, policies, and practices of others that create the barriers disabled […]

7 Feb, 2023

Increasing Access to Justice for Indigenous Clients

2024-01-30T14:25:26-08:00February 7, 2023|Tags: , , , , |

For Access to Justice Week, 2023, we’re profiling Debra Febril, a lawyer in CLAS’s BC Human Rights Clinic. Debra works to make the human rights complaints process more accessible for Indigenous Peoples.

Q: Tell us about yourself!

A: My Nisga’a name is Tsit’tuutsgum Ts’winhl Kaax Xsaak. […]

19 Jan, 2023

Age Discrimination in Housing – What’s Legal, What’s Not

2024-01-30T14:18:01-08:00January 19, 2023|Tags: , , , , , , |

By Laura Track, Human Rights Clinic Lawyer, January 2023

Recently, the provincial government made changes to BC’s Strata Property Act. The amendments remove stratas’ ability to prevent or limit rentals (section 141). They also limit stratas’ ability to set age restrictions (sections 123.1 and […]

14 Jul, 2022

Mental Disabilities and Human Rights in Housing

2024-01-30T14:18:59-08:00July 14, 2022|Tags: , , , , , , , |

By: Emily Zarychta, Human Rights Clinic Lawyer, July 14, 2022

Housing is an essential part of our security and health, especially to those who have mental disabilities. People with mental disabilities are especially vulnerable to precarious housing and homelessness.[1]

Housing providers including landlords, co-ops, and […]

16 Jun, 2022

Human Rights in Heat Waves

2024-01-30T14:21:04-08:00June 16, 2022|Tags: , , , , , , , |

By Emily Zarychta and Laura Track, Human Rights Clinic Lawyers, June 16, 2022

Climate change is an increasing risk to human health. The heat dome that swept across BC in June, 2021 saw temperatures soar to a record-breaking 49.6°C in some parts of the province. A […]

10 May, 2022

How Smells and Human Rights Intersect

2024-01-30T14:22:17-08:00May 10, 2022|Tags: , , , , , , |

May 10, 2022 by Emily Zarychta, Human Rights Clinic Lawyer

Smells can be very polarizing. Take the ‘king of the fruit’ – the durian – as an example. This much-loved fruit smells so pungent[1] that the fruits are banned from Singapore’s subway systems and […]

4 Mar, 2022

Anti-Asian Hate and Human Rights

2022-07-14T11:36:00-07:00March 4, 2022|Tags: , , , , , |

March 4, 2022 by Emily Zarychta, Human Rights Clinic Advocate

From Japanese Canadian internment camps to Chinese head taxes,[1]  anti-Asian[2] hate and discrimination have a long history in Canada. The recent rise in awareness about anti-Asian hate validates what Asian communities have […]

14 Feb, 2022

No-Pet Clauses and Human Rights – Part Two ( Medical Information)

2024-01-30T14:22:52-08:00February 14, 2022|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

February 14th, 2022 by Emily Zarychta, Human Rights Clinic Advocate

This blog post is a follow-up to our July 13, 2020 post: No-Pet Clauses and Human Rights. Our Clinic continues to receive many questions about this issue, and there have been some developments in the […]

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