Judge sorry for ‘racial’ comments to law class
Calgary justice allegedly said she was uncomfortable in room ‘full of big dark people’
CALGARY— A dean at the University of Calgary says a judge has apologized to a class of second-year law students for offensive comments she reportedly made.
Law school dean Ian Holloway says the school received complaints that Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Kristine Eidsvik made comments that “were insensitive to racial minorities” at a Q-and-A session about judicial mediations.
CBC News reports Eidsvik told the class that she was uncomfortable walking into a room “full of big dark people.”
She reportedly said that she was used to being in an “ivory tower” away from “the riff-raff.”
Holloway says the “matter was addressed immediately” and the judge apologized to the class on Friday.
The text of that apology was emailed to The Canadian Press by the Court of Queen’s Bench.
“Yesterday afternoon, in response to a question, I made a remark about my initial reaction walking into a JDR room that as soon as it came out of my mouth I recognized was not appropriate, and could be construed as insensitive to racial minorities,” Eidsvik stated in the text.
“I am not here this morning to try and justify my comment. It was wrong and I apologize to all of you.”
Eidsvik is the university’s judge-inresidence for the 2017-18 school year.