About 20 blind people and their allies demonstrated outside the Cactus Club restaurant on Vancouver’s Broadway Street to denounce what they consider to be a discriminatory policy.
Several of them say that when they showed up at a restaurant with their guide dog, they were asked for written proof that their dog was truly a service animal. They say this practice is discriminatory and makes them feel like second-class citizens.
It is against our human rights to impose profiling on us by asking us for ID for our dogs.said Matt Salli, one of the protesters.
As soon as they ask us, it tarnishes the experience we have with this company.he continues. It stresses me out right away.
A document from the provincial government, entitled The rights and responsibilities of businesses and the public, confirms that businesses should not ask customers to prove their dog is a guide dog.
A person with a disability who uses a guide dog or assistance dog should not be stopped or questioned unless there is a problemthe document says. The best way to recognize a guide dog or assistance dog is to observe the behavior of the dog and its owner.
A spokeswoman for the restaurant says its most recent policy, issued this year, does not require staff to ask for identification for guide dogs. We will use this event to remind our teams of the current policy.says Divya Thakore, senior director of communications at Cactus Clubin an email.
Cactus ClubCafe is welcoming to all guests, including those with guide dogs. Our assistance animal policy is reviewed and updated regularly to ensure that our policies are aligned with relevant regulations.
A quote from Divya Thakore
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Blind people and their allies lament that the Cactus Club restaurant is proof that guide dogs are real.
Photo : Radio-Canada / William Burr
One of the protesters, Cathy Butler, said she ate at Cactus Club for years without problems, but that a new policy seemed to have come into effect a few years ago.
When she called Cactus Club to complain about the treatment, she was told it was a blanket policy. She shared an email written in July of last year where a restaurant representative tells her, I would love to be able to set your next reservation personally. When you are ready to come back, please contact me a few days in advance.
However, Cathy Butler wants to be able to come to the restaurant without notice, like everyone else.
Another protester, Maria Kovacs, said that as a blind person, she felt vulnerable when asked to open her bag to provide identification.
I am a woman who has no eyesight at all. When I have to open my purse in front of someone I don’t know, it makes me vulnerable to theft, and I refuse to do it.
Protesters say restaurants aren’t the only places they face discrimination.
It’s a broader problemsays Maria Kovacs, citing taxis and Ubers as examples, where she says she is sometimes rejected when the driver learns she has a guide dog.
