CORNWALL, ONT.

The City of Cornwall has been named, along with several other incorporated entities, in a complaint to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario.

The complaint centres around a policy that requires women and girls over the age of 10 to wear tops while using the municipal aquatic centre, outdoor pools, or parks.

The complainant in the case believes the policy is discriminatory towards women and violates her human rights, and is looking to the tribunal for redress.

“We’ve been informed that a complaint has been filed with the tribunal arguing that our policy is discriminatory,” Mayor Leslie O’Shaughnessy told the Cornwall Standard-Freeholder. “It’s now in the city solicitor’s hands to respond to the complaint. They will review the policy to see if it conforms to (human rights law) or is discriminatory.”

Details of the case, such as who the complainant is, and who else other than the City of Cornwall has been named in the case, have not been released. It may involve a number of other private and public pools and parks across Eastern Ontario.

The Standard-Freeholder made several inquiries to the Human Right Tribunal of Ontario asking for that information, but the tribunal’s administration refused to release any information that may identify the complainant ahead of the hearing – the time and location of which they also would not release.

O’Shaughnessy confirmed the complainant is not a Cornwall resident and has no known connection to the city. The mayor said he too had to be careful about releasing information the tribunal has not made public.

As for the other parties named in the complaint, it stands to reason they have posted and published rules that do not allow women to be topless.

The entire complaint, at least for Cornwall, is focused on a two-sentence policy found in the department of development, parks, and recreation’s outdoor pool policy. It reads in its entirety:

“Topless policy: Females 10 years of age or older are required to wear tops. Violators will be asked to leave.”

It has been legal for women go topless in Ontario since 1996, when a Guelph University student, Gwen Jacob, won a five-year legal battle after being convicted of public indecency for taking her top off during a particularly hot summer day. There have been similar rulings in other provinces more recently, but the Supreme Court of Canada has not ruled on the subject.

Cornwall’s topless policy is a holdover from the 1990s, said the mayor, and he doesn’t recall any instance of it ever being enforced.

“This policy has not been reviewed for a very long time. There is a possibility that it is discriminatory towards women,” he said. “So we’re going to wait for the advice from our lawyers on the action that should be taken.

“If it is shown to be discriminatory, the matter will be to remove it from our policy.”

The city council met behind closed doors on June 26 to discuss the case with the city solicitor.

Under the rules of the human rights tribunal, after a complaint is made the people and organizations named in it have 30 days to respond. The case is still at this early stage, so it will likely be a few months before any hearing is held.

If it goes that far, and the tribunal rules against Cornwall and the other named parties, the city could face large fines. Even if that doesn’t end up happening, the complaint is still costing Cornwall taxpayers money. The municipality has no option but to respond, said O’Shaughnessy, and lawyers cost money.

If the city’s lawyer determines the policy is discriminatory and council repeals the topless rules, O’Shaughnessy hopes that would satisfy the complainant, and avoid having to go before the tribunal and possibly face fines.

ahale@postmedia.com

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