A vividly-named barber shop in Regina, Sask., has apologized to a would-be customer who was refused service on the basis of her gender.
The Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission announced Tuesday that Ragged Ass Barbers has come to a “mutually amenable mediated settlement” with Evie Ruddy, who contacted the shop on Aug. 28, 2014, to inquire about a haircut, but was refused service.
Ruddy was "wrongfully denied service because she is a woman," the commission said Tuesday.
Ragged Ass Barbers owner Craig Zamonsky issued an apology in which he said Ruddy “should have not been turned away when she contacted the barbershop to inquire about getting a haircut. Ragged Ass Barbers will do its best to continue to meet the needs of its customers within the scope we provide.”
Ruddy said she believed Zamonsky’s apology was “heartfelt and genuine.”
“It was a difficult time for me and my friends and my family to experience what it is like to face discrimination and to voice it,” she said in a statement. “Craig, as the owner of Ragged Ass barbers, should be respected for this acknowledgment and for participating in an amicable resolution process. I look forward to feeling safer about being who I am.”
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