A controlled burn is setting fires intentionally to maintain the health of a forest.
This is how I view litigation.
We need to take our cases to court or to a human rights tribunal to maintain the health of a society.
This isn’t about causing trouble or intentionally trying to make it difficult for other people. I don’t see it as anything negative.
It’s about wanting change. It’s about protecting those who need protection.
It’s about being in the public eye to see what has occurred, so that it never happens again.
To me, the scariest thing is when people are in a position of authority, and they think they are untouchable. It makes me want to vomit.
It is about prioritizing the needs of those who are most vulnerable and creating decisions (case law) to benefit society.
Decisions from the BC Human Rights Tribunal, to me, are written in gold.
Litigation is a part of systemic advocacy. An individual’s complaint can make human rights decisions that shift the system and alter how it functions in a meaningful way. It can change how people make decisions and influence their behaviour. It moves one of the walls in the maze.
As firm and unmovable as law feels, it changes all the time. Laws change either by governments or by courts. Both are constantly writing and creating output.
I love being able to assist and support people with their own complaints through my work. I am not personally in a position anymore to make more decisions, but I fill that itch through my 9-5 job that I have now.
Complaints and litigation that stem from marginalized communities contribute to a healthy society, and I would love to find a way to make this more accessible.
A Tribunal system is so backlogged that it takes three years to accept a complaint and will weed out more people. Ultimately, this will mean that our society will be less healthy. Fewer little fires to keep the forest healthy.