washing ceremony held in bella bella after human rights complaint settled with td bank
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sharif bhamji, an indigenous and muslim man who was denied service at a td bank in surrey that refused his indian status card as fake, attended a washing ceremony at the heiltsuk big house in bella bella, b.c., on sunday, nov. 16, 2025.
nathan skillen
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heiltsuk nation
a traditional washing ceremony was held sunday evening in bella bella following the settlement of a human rights complaint against td bank by an indigenous muslim man who said he was denied service at a branch near his surrey home four years ago and was told that his federal status card must be a fake.
sharif mohammed bhamji and the heiltsuk tribal council filed a canadian human rights commission complaint against td bank in 2022. the terms of the settlement include confidential financial compensation and funds to assist the nation’s urban support team, which helps heiltsuk people living in the lower mainland. it also includes funds to cover the costs of holding the washing ceremony.
“i’m happy that we’re able to do this here. i’m glad there’s some closure to the situation, and hopefully with this, there’ll be some changes made,” said bhamji on sunday ahead of the ceremony. “now that we’re at this point, it’s something that we’re glad to be in touch with our roots and to be able to close it in a way that is at home.”
in may 2021, bhamji, whose mother was born in bella bella on b.c.’s central coast, home of the heiltsuk first nation, and whose father is from india, tried to open a bank account at a td branch in surrey’s clayton heights.
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when he presented his new indian status card with his name and picture on it, the bank denied him service, claiming the card was fake. bank staff also called the police, who later went to bhamji’s house. in a video posted on the nation’s youtube channel in 2022, bhamji spoke about his cross-cultural heritage.
“i’m muslim and east indian. i have a muslim name. i’m also indigenous. but i can’t be both while banking at td.”
inside the heiltsuk nation big house in bella bella ahead of sunday’s washing ceremony.
nathan skillen
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heiltsuk nation
in a media release, the heiltsuk nation said td bank has since “improved the training and process around the use of certificates of indian status to the satisfaction of all involved.”
the nation said participating in washing ceremonies is a way to “relieve people who have been harmed, from the burden of trauma, and to allow them to move on and no longer talk about what happened in a bad way.”
the ceremony was held at heiltsuk nation’s big house in bella bella and attended by td bank executives, said the heiltsuk nation chief councillor, marilyn slett. hereditary leaders and community members were invited to the public ceremony, along with bhamji’s family and others who have supported him.
slett said the community spent time preparing for the traditional healing ritual and that it involves talking about what happened on the day and the impact it had on bhamji and his family.
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“they’ll talk about td being in the community and in the big house, and participating and acknowledging that they’re here,” she said. “it’s successful when these institutions participate. because although he’s gone through the tribunal process and there has been a settlement, that is the western remedy.”
she said the washing ceremony will provide bhamji and his family a meaningful path to healing. she said it will be “as equally healing for td. it’s very reciprocal.”
heiltsuk nation chief marilyn slett says the washing ceremony should be equally healing for td. “it’s very reciprocal.”
heiltsuk nation
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submitted
“we recognize that unconscious bias can lead to discrimination and wholeheartedly apologize to mr. bhamji for his experience. we also extend this apology to mr. bhamji’s family, the heiltsuk nation and its community members. we strive to do better and have since taken steps to learn from this and to ensure it doesn’t happen again,” said mick ramos, senior manager for corporate and public affairs, in an email to postmedia.
the case is the second human rights complaint brought by the heiltsuk nation and settled against a bank in recent years.
in december 2019, maxwell johnson was with his then-12-year-old granddaughter tori attempting to open an account with the bank of montreal for the girl, and like, bhamji, had his status card questioned.
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he and his granddaughter were handcuffed by vancouver police after a bmo employee questioned the validity of their identity cards and called 911.
a washing ceremony was later held as part of a settlement in that case and attended by bmo executives and representatives from the vancouver police department, although not the arresting officers.
slett said that the nation has met with the arresting officers in the bmo case and calls on them to see how healing and uplifting participation in the ritual can be.
in 2024, the nation also supported a father and daughter in bringing a human rights complaint against canadian tire and blackbird security after they were allegedly subjected to racial profiling and racism at a coquitlam store.
inside the heiltsuk nation big house in bella bella.
nathan skillen
/
heiltsuk nation
sharif bhamji outside the td bank branch in surrey where he says he was denied service.
heiltsuk nation
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submitted
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