Ontario firefighter claims discrimination after not being served vegan food

An Ontario firefighter who helped fight a huge wildfire in British Columbia in 2017 is now speaking out about being discriminated against. But the discrimination he feels he endured is not based on gender or race or orientation. It’s based on his vegan diet.

The National Post reports that “Adam Knauff has filed a complaint with the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario against his employer, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, over his treatment and subsequent suspension while fighting a fire near William’s Lake, B.C., in 2017.”

In his complaint, Knauff alleges that “The Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry discriminated against me and failed to accommodate my sincerely held ethical beliefs (creed) when it failed to provide me with food that accommodated my personal commitment to ethical veganism, and then disciplined me and suspended me because I attempted to assert my right to accommodation of that sincerely held ethical belief.”

The National Post also reports that “Camille Labchuk, the executive director of the advocacy group Animal Justice, said it hopes to intervene in the case because veganism in the workplace isn’t limited to Knauff.”

Basically, Knauff sometimes had to make due without vegan protein during some meals, and it made him sad.

The Ontario Ministry of National Resources has denied Knauff’s allegation.

What do you think? Is veganism a creed that should be protected by a human rights tribunal? Let us know in the comments below!