Landlord discriminated against Black prospective tenant by refusing to rent based on racial stereotypes.
The complainant, a Black woman, alleged that the respondent discriminated against her on the basis of race when he refused to rent her a basement apartment.
After the complainant was treated dismissively by the respondent, her white roommate viewed the same apartment and was enthusiastically offered the unit.
The Board of Inquiry found that the respondent's stated reasons for the differing treatment were pretextual and that his assumption that the complainant would be noisy and financially unstable was based on racial stereotypes.
The Board concluded that the respondent infringed the complainant's right to equal treatment in accommodation under the Human Rights Code and awarded $4,300 in damages.
Richards v. Waisglass, 1994 CanLII 18427
