What was supposed to be a nice evening at a restaurant turned into a sleepless night for Priti Shah.
On Saturday, Shah said she went to Palm Lounge at The Fort Garry Hotel to have dinner and watch her friends who were performing music.
She said there was an issue with her food order and rather than trying to speak with the server over the loud music at the table, she chose to approach the server near the bar where it was quiet.
“I was walking back to the table when some women at a table next to mine started putting their hands up waving,” said Shah. “They were saying I needed to chill, or take a pill."
Shah said she approached the table to see if she knew who was sitting there.
“When I got a little closer, one of them lifted her hand and wagged her finger and told me I should be going back to my own country."
Shah says she told staff what had happened, but was told all staff could do was ask the guests at the other table to switch seats, which the guests had refused to do.
On Monday, Ida Albo, owner of the Fort Garry Hotel told CTV news, “we feel terrible that this incident took place."
"We don't tolerate racial slurs," Albo added.
However Albo said given the information she had received so far, she doesn’t believe staff could have done anything differently.
“Staff did their best in a difficult situation,” Albo said.
Meanwhile, Shah believes more could have been done.
“Similar to our libraries, our buses, our casinos or sporting events, we have an expectation of respectful behaviour,” Shah said.
Shah said restaurant staff should have asked the guest who made the comments to leave.
“Countless people from across the country have been in touch with me today,” Shah said.
“People saying I’m Canadian and I am embarrassed that a fellow Canadian will speak to another Canadian in this way”
Shah, a Canadian-born lawyer living in Winnipeg, said she has offered to train hotel staff on how to handle situations like this in the future free of charge.
She said no one from the Fort Garry Hotel has responded to her offer.
