Ontario-based comedian Guy Earle likes to push his act to the edge. Three years ago, at a restaurant on Vancouver's Commercial Drive, he admits to ridiculing two lesbians.
One of them, Lorna Pardy, says that Earle's act was more like an attack.
She testified at the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal Monday that he hurled obnoxious homophobic insults, repeatedly calling her a "dyke," amongst other, more inflammatory, insults.
However, Pardy testified that she did throw two glasses of water on Earle to defend herself.
She declined to speak to CTV News outside the tribunal Monday.
If the tribunal decides Pardy was discriminated against because of her sexual orientation, Earle could be fined $20,000. The restaurant may be hit, too.
"It means is he going to stay in business or not," a lawyer for Salam Ismail, owner of Zesty's restaurant, told reporters.
The case could put a chill on artists who tread close to the line between free expression and discrimination.
Jim Millar, Earle's lawyer, walked out of the hearing in protest Monday, because he doesn't think the tribunal has jurisdiction over what he believes is a freedom of speech issue.
"The impact of this decision, in terms of their jurisdiction, would impact the internet, would impact Google, YouTube, the performing arts -- artistic expression of any kind," he said.
As for Earle, he won't attend the tribunal hearing because he thinks the last word belongs to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Peter Grainger
