A Coquitlam high school teacher is facing consequences after he told students racism doesn’t exist, and also made some concerning remarks surrounding Black Lives Matter protests.
A decision from the B.C. Commissioner for Teacher Regulation was published over a week ago, stemming from a late April report.
According to the decision, the Coquitlam School District submitted a report to the commissioner for teacher regulation regarding Evgueni Melnik.
The decision states that during one lesson on comparative civilizations and a discussion about the Epic of Gilgamesh, Melnik drew a line graph on the board with several sections, including animals, humans, Jesus, and God.
At some point, Melnik referenced Black Lives Matter and circled the term “animals” several times.
“In a conversation with a student outside of class time, Melnik said he believed all lives matter and that the police were not the problem,” the decision reveals.
Melnik also made some comments about gender.
“The media has you believe there are more than two genders when using the words ‘bisexual’ and ‘binary’… there are so many labels, who cares.”
According to the decision, a student in the class, a member of the LGBTQ community, reported being “very upset” and “impacted” by the comments. Melnik also said “racism does not exist,” adding that a lot of what is described as racism today is merely “cultural differences.”
Melnik had an example.
The decision states, “Melnik talked about historic anti-Asian sentiments and referred to the ‘cultural traits’ of Asian people who had worked on the railroad in the 19th century in British Columbia and who he said were resented because they worked for less money and followed direction.”
In December 2021, Melnik was suspended for eight days without pay and ordered to complete a diversity and sensitivity training program. The following year, in February 2022, the commissioner ordered an investigation.
“The views Melnik shared did not foster a safe environment for his students, nor did he role-model respect for diversity,” the decision adds.
The decision states, “On Sept. 12, 2023, the commissioner considered this matter and determined to propose a consent resolution agreement to Melnik. ”
Melnik did not dispute any of the facts presented in the decision and was ordered to complete additional courses by September 2025.
Last month, a different Coquitlam teacher was disciplined for calling students racist.
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