Canada: University of Ottawa cancels Yoga classes for being 'non-Western'

A Canadian university has banned a free weekly yoga class after the varsity staff claimed the ancient Indian meditative practice was a form of "cultural appropriation". The decision to cancel the classes was made by the University of Ottawa's Student Federation, the varsity's independent student body.

Jennifer Scharf, a yoga practitioner who has offered free weekly sessions to students at the University of Ottawa since 2008, said she was shocked when she learnt her free weekly classes were suspended because staff said the ancient discipline is a form of "cultural appropriation".

"There are cultural issues of implication involved in the practice. Yoga has been under a lot of controversy lately due to how it is being practised", and which cultures those practices "are being taken from," staff from the Centre for Students with Disabilities, where the classes were held for students of all abilities, wrote in an email.

The email further says that because many of those cultures "have experienced oppression, cultural genocide and diasporas due to colonialism and Western supremacy.. We need to be mindful of this and how we express ourselves while practising yoga," Ottawa Sun reported.

Scharf said the complaint that killed the programme came from a "social justice warrior" with "fainting heart ideologies" in search of a cause celebre. Scharf said she suggested a compromise by changing the name of the classes to suggest "mindful stretching", but was rejected.

Noting that there has been no response from the university, Sharaf said she, however, remains optimistic that the institution will support her.

"It's crazy that someone would find yoga offensive in the way we teach it. If you look at how, historically yoga has been so non-controversial, it's a wonder nobody's taking offence with kickboxing or spin class instead," Sharaf added.