MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — A video that shows an agitated woman demanding her son be examined by a "white doctor" at a Toronto-area walk-in clinic is sparking online outrage.
In the video, which was posted online Sunday and has since been viewed more than 66,000 times on YouTube, the woman becomes increasingly belligerent as she repeatedly asks to see a doctor who "doesn't have brown teeth" and "speaks English."
As the unidentified woman repeats her demands, the video shows others in the waiting room confront her, calling her behaviour unacceptable and racist.
York Regional Police say they were called to a clinic in Mississauga, Ont., shortly after 12:30 p.m. Sunday on reports of a disturbance.
Spokesman Const. Mark Fischer says a woman was being verbally aggressive in requesting that a white doctor attend to her son.
He says the woman's son eventually received treatment, and the case was closed with no charges laid since no one was hurt and no threats were made.
Many took to social media to decry what they described as the casual racism at play in the incident.
"Are you really going to deny your child who is sick care just because the doctor (who is a licensed professional!!!) isn't white???" one person wrote on Twitter.
"The video of the 'white doctor' woman made me cry pretty hard. It made (me) happy too. I'd rather see racism in public, not hidden in the public," another wrote.
The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, which regulates doctors in the province, said it does not have a policy to address that situation but stressed that the Ontario Human Rights Code states all those who provide services in the province are entitled to do so free from discrimination.
It also says that under its policies, doctors may consider cutting ties with a patient whose behaviour becomes inappropriate or abusive.
The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada addressed the issue directly in a position statement a few years ago, saying that requests for a doctor of a particular gender may be accommodated if made during regular office hours but not for emergency or after-hours care.
"Race isn't an option," a society spokeswoman said by email.
The position statement further says that "patients can decline the care offered, but should take full responsibilities for those actions."
