É«É«À²

The case of alleged discrimination for “Flying while Black” will test how far the Canadian Human Rights Act can go in awarding damages to air travellers for discrimination. Claims against carriers are governed by the Montreal Convention, an international pact that’s a standard liability regime for death and injury, damage or loss of baggage and flight delay only.

Business-class passenger June Francis had had her knees replaced six months before a trip to É«É«À². She approached an Air Canada check-in agent for help amid an exceptionally long lineup, the tribunal heard.

She testified that the agent cut her off before she could request an accommodation, yelled at her and told her to “get in line.” Unsuccessful in getting the agent’s name or identification number, she took photos of the agent with her cellphone for identification so she could complain to Air Canada.

Francis, who is five-foot-10, was described as “loud,” “demanding” and “unruly,” the tribunal heard from Air Canada. A supervisor and security guard were dispatched and demanded that Francis delete the photos, or else she would be refused boarding.

Francis testified that the supervisor said to her, “I can see why you are a problem. You do not take directions. I can see why you were treated that way.” 

“It was a very demeaning comment,” Francis said. “It suggested that I needed directions from people to know how to behave.”

The now 70-year-old woman — a Simon Fraser University business professor and a King Charles III Coronation Medal recipient for her anti-racism work — said she felt afraid when she saw the airport security guard.

“I was shaken,” she testified. “I had done nothing wrong. I am a Black woman … I know what has happened from my community when law enforcement arrives.”

On the witness stand, the agent, later identified as Betty Liao, described Francis as rude and aggressive, but denied yelling at her to get in line or that the complainant ever mentioned her physical needs. She also testified she did not remember if Francis asked for her name or identification number to file a complaint, or if she refused. 

Liao did remember telling Francis to stop taking photos of her, and told the tribunal she felt unsafe. “This is too intimidating,” testified Liao, who is five feet tall. “And I have no right to say no?”

In laying out the complaint at the hearing, Francis’s lawyer Sujit Choudhry said this is the first case of flying while Black to reach a full hearing before the tribunal.

“Professor Francis, a grandmother, (then) 62-year-old, recovering from a knee surgery, posed no threat,” he told the tribunal.

Aaron Hefter, CEO of a sports nutrition company, was travelling to Columbus, Ohio, when he witnessed the altercation involving Francis, the Air Canada supervisor and security guard. While he couldn’t hear the conversation, he testified that the “elderly woman” looked “distraught and scared” and the other parties seemed “in-her-face aggressive.”

“They were talking down on her,” recalled Hefter, who gave Francis his business card before he left for his flight. “No one should have spoken to her how I was witnessing she was being spoken to.”

The tribunal heard that the Air Canada supervisor, Elaine Lee, had told Francis that she would follow up with Liao and assured her the incident would be documented. She also provided Francis with names and information to file a complaint, according to the security guard’s incident report. Francis was asked to delete the photo because “it was taken with the intent to slander the individual,” the report said.

Francis disputed those statements.

Lee testified she was polite and calm in apologizing for the situation, but was firm in directing Francis that she must delete the agent’s photo. She also gave evidence that she wasn’t aware of any Air Canada policy on whether employees should or should not provide their names to customers, or discretion to let customers take photos of them.

It’s a common understanding agents do not, Lee said, if they feel at risk. “I cannot tell you if it’s written in one of our training manuals.” 

During cross-examination by Air Canada lawyer Clay Hunter, Francis was asked if anti-racism is a primary part of her professional life, which included being the special adviser to Simon Fraser University’s president on anti-racism, director of the university’s Institute for Diaspora Research & Engagement, and co-founder of its Black Caucus.

“Yes or no answer,” said Hunter. “Do you consider yourself an advocate for anti-Black racism?”

“I have advocated for … racial justice and justice generally my entire life,” Francis replied.

Hunter also challenged Francis on why she only mentioned Air Canada’s failure to accommodate her knee conditions in her updated claim to the tribunal in May 2025. Francis’s response was she only gave the summary of the event in the initial complaints, and her focus was on the “egregious” mistreatment she received.

Hunter questioned Francis about why she did not mention her photographing of agent Liao in her initial complaints to Air Canada and the human rights commission, and also lied about having deleted the photo when she secretly emailed herself a copy.  

“When you put that back into the context, is it not fair and reasonable that (agent) Betty Liao could have felt threatened or unsafe when faced with her photo being taken?” he asked.

Francis repeated that the agent had refused to give her identity, and that’s the only way to identify her in a complaint.

At the hearing, Rachel Zellars, a Saint Mary’s University professor and researcher and expert on anti-Black racism, said Francis’s case has the hallmarks of what’s known as “Sapphire tropes” — stereotypes of Black women as angry, untrustworthy, dishonest, aggressive, mean and violent.

“She’s described as unhappy, argumentative, impatient, demanding, unruly, eliciting threatening behaviour, being loud and being non-compliant,” Zellars testified. “Those terms provided a textbook characterization of the Sapphire trope.”

Even though both the agent and supervisor are Asian, she said racialized people are not immune to racial biases.

Although there has been no thorough analysis done on whether Francis demonstrated anti-Asian racism toward the Air Canada agent, Zellars said there’s no evidence of Francis’s biases based on the documents she reviewed.

In seeking damages in the amount of $40,000, Francis also wants Air Canada to institute sensitivity training and training in unconscious bias, anti-racism and anti-sexism, as well conducting an audit of its services to ensure it treats racialized passengers with respect and sensitivity.

The hearing continues this fall with testimonies from more witnesses from both parties.