{"id":288998,"date":"2025-11-17T14:15:11","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T14:15:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/288998\/"},"modified":"2025-11-17T14:15:11","modified_gmt":"2025-11-17T14:15:11","slug":"td-bank-settles-human-rights-complaint-by-b-c-muslim-indigenous-man","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/288998\/","title":{"rendered":"TD Bank settles human rights complaint by B.C. Muslim-Indigenous man"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Sharif Mohammed Bhamji with his daughter outside a TD branch in Surrey, B.C. The bank has settled the human-rights complaint brought by Bhamji in 2022.HO\/The Canadian Press<\/p>\n

A human rights complaint has been settled between the TD Bank TD-T<\/a> and a Muslim-Indigenous man who claimed he was racially profiled while trying to open a bank account at a Surrey, B.C., branch.<\/p>\n

Sharif Mohammed Bhamji, a member of the Heiltsuk Nation, said he hopes his case serves as example to others who have experienced similar injustices and encourages them to speak out.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not the solution but it\u2019s definitely part of it, and I\u2019m glad to be part of a solution,\u201d he said in an interview. <\/p>\n

Bhamji and TD executives took part in a traditional Heiltsuk washing ceremony on Sunday in Bella Bella, a healing ritual that the nation\u2019s elected chief said sets the bar for corporate accountability. <\/p>\n

The monetary values of the settlement have not been made public, said the Heiltsuk First Nation, who joined Bhamji in the filing of the 2022 Canadian Human Rights Commission complaint.<\/p>\n

But the nation said in a news release that it included general damages, funds for its Urban Heiltsuk Support Team in Vancouver and funding to cover the costs of the washing ceremony.<\/p>\n

It said TD Bank has also improved its training and process around the use of status cards \u201cto the satisfaction of all involved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Opinion: The racial profiling of Indigenous shoppers is unacceptable<\/a><\/p>\n

The settlement marks the conclusion of a complaint that was set off in May 2021 when Bhamji went into a TD branch near his Surrey home to verify his identity after completing the online portion of the banking application.<\/p>\n

When he presented his Indian status card, the teller, seemingly perplexed by his Muslim last name, told him it was fake, Bhamji said on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Bhamji\u2019s father is Muslim from India while his mother is a member of the Heiltsuk First Nation on B.C.\u2019s northwest coast.<\/p>\n

\u201cI ended up leaving frustrated,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He thought that was the end of it, saying it is not unusual for him to experience racial profiling. <\/p>\n

\u201cI totally thought that our business was ended and I would have to find somewhere else to go, and that was the end of it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

But he was surprised when police showed up at his house, inquiring about the situation and asking about his name and status.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey realized nothing was fraudulent and no charges were laid, but that situation led us to where we are today,\u201d he said of the human rights complaint.<\/p>\n

\u201cI felt like I needed to do something, just because it just felt so wrong. The situation felt so wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n

Supreme Court agrees to hear appeal of Saskatchewan\u2019s school pronoun case<\/a><\/p>\n

TD spokesman Mick Ramos said in an e-mailed statement that the bank is striving \u201cto do better and have since taken steps to learn from\u201d the situation and ensure \u201cit doesn\u2019t happen again.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe recognize that unconscious bias can lead to discrimination and wholeheartedly apologize to Mr. Bhamji for his experience,\u201d Ramos said in the statement. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe also extend this apology to Mr. Bhamji\u2019s family, the Heiltsuk Nation and its community members.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bhamji and members of TD\u2019s executive took part in a traditional washing ceremony, which elected Heiltsuk Nation Chief Marilyn Slett said is one of the most significant strides coming out of the human rights process. <\/p>\n

She said the bank\u2019s participation in the healing ceremony sets \u201ca precedent for corporate accountability in Canada.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat really aids in the healing of traumatic instances like what happened to Sharif,\u201d she said in an interview. <\/p>\n

The situation is not isolated, Slett said, pointing to another human rights complaint brought by the Heiltsuk Nation against BMO. <\/p>\n

Maxwell Johnson, who alongside Heiltsuk Tribal Council, settled with BMO after he and his 12-year-old granddaughter were handcuffed in 2019 after trying to open a bank account.<\/p>\n

Johnson and the Nation also settled with the Vancouver Police Department, but Slett said the arresting officers backed out of a scheduled washing ceremony, \u201cpreventing healing and closure from the incident.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Vancouver Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. <\/p>\n

Slett said both scenarios go a long way in bringing awareness to racial injustices.<\/p>\n

Cases like Johnson\u2019s and Bhamji\u2019s provide the opportunity for banks and other corporate structures to \u201ctake a look at their processes and their policies and make those changes so it doesn\u2019t happen again,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Bhamji agreed, saying he hopes it signals a larger cultural shift, adding that he did took his business to another bank \u2013 where he intends to stay.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have any negative feelings toward TD Bank,\u201d he concluded. \u201cI\u2019m glad they worked with us and were able to find a solution with us.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Sharif Mohammed Bhamji with his daughter outside a TD branch in Surrey, B.C.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":288999,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,1008,49174,41,39,42,40],"class_list":{"0":"post-288998","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-headlines","9":"tag-news","10":"tag-pleasemod","11":"tag-streetwise","12":"tag-top-news","13":"tag-top-stories","14":"tag-topnews","15":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288998","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=288998"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/288998\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/288999"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=288998"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=288998"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=288998"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}