GUELPH, Ontario (LifeSiteNews) – A Canadian woman says she has been banned for life from the University of Guelph in a violation of her Charter rights because she overheard a private conversation that her father had about the Iran war with some Muslims. 

Sarah Dotzert, a young conservative activist, posted a YouTube video about her ordeal through her organization, Unify Action. She explains just how far the university went in political correctness by banning both her and her father.

“I’m about to expose the reality of what it’s like to work on university campuses in Canada. I just banned from ever setting foot on the University of Guelph ever again. No joke, this is not a lie. That thumbnail was real — I actually got banned,” she said.

According to Dotzert, she received a letter in the mail from the university titled “notice of trespass.”

The letter reads, as noted by Dotzert: 

Dear Sarah,

As a result of your actions on March 6, 2026, this letter serves as a notice of trespass. The University of Guelph and all associated properties are private property. Presently, you are not a registered student, staff, or faculty member at the University of Guelph and are therefore prohibited from entering all University of Guelph properties. Should you be found in violation of this order, you will be charged under the Trespass to Property Act by the Campus Safety Office. This prohibition is in effect for an indefinite period from the date of this letter. A copy of this notice will be forwarded to the Guelph Police Service for their records. If you have any questions, please contact me directly.

—Director of Campus Security

According to Dotzert, she did nothing that would have warranted her being banned from campus. She says that on March 6 at around 7 p.m. she was attending a “private religious function” at the university. She noted that the event was open to the public as well as “non-students,” so she was “free to attend.”

Dotzert said that as her father was dropping her off in the parking lot, he started a conversation with some other girls next to them. Dotzert said that for context the girls “were Muslim.”

“His opening question was, ‘What do you guys think of the war in Iran?” to the girls.

“Immediately, they take it hostile. On his part, he was not hateful, judgmental, or offensive in any way. He makes conversation with everyone … He was simply trying to talk … But they were offended. The conversation lasted minute, maybe two minutes,” Dotzert recounted.

According to Dotzert, she “took no part in it” and was already out of the car and “walking away.”

“I heard the conversation from about 10 feet away, but I did not take part in the conversation. The girls took great offense to it. I didn’t speak. I was merely a witness,” she said. 

“So, I went in uh, to the lobby of the building where I was going to be attending the function, and the girls come in after me. So, I see them, they take a photo of me, and then I see them reporting me to the front desk. So, I already know, oh, this is trouble, but I did nothing wrong. So, I thought I was I thought everything was fine and nothing would come of it.”

Dotzert said that something did come of the incident. Because of the photo, campus officials “must have” run their “license plates” to find out who they were.

“And now both my dad and I are banned from the University of Guelph forever. The trouble is, I did literally nothing. I did not engage in the conversation. I only listened to it and noted. I was a witness to the conversation,” she said. 

Dotzert said she wanted to explain her side of the story “that this was not a hate crime, not on my part and not on my dad’s part.”

“He’s an alumni of the University of Guelph, so this is wrong for him as well. To be banned from his former university is quite wrong.”

The director of safety in reply to Dotzert said that the “tone and intent of the conversation with the students was reported to my office with a different interpretation of the interaction and was indeed unwelcome. The trespass order will remain in place.”

Dotzert said that she said “nothing” and did not do anything to warrant such a trespass notice.

“I am now banned for life from the University of G for hearing an unwelcome conversation involving members of a minority group,” she said.

Massive implications for ‘everyone’

Dotzert said that her case has “massive implications” for “everyone,” adding that she is “going to try to fight this.”

“I’m hopeful and prayerful that we can actually get something done here. I hope to goodness that they are reasonable and that they will listen to reason because this is ridiculous,” she said.

“This is absolute insanity in my case, but this is also insanity in my dad’s case. This was just a conversation.”

“This was simply a conversation. If Candace Owens can get away with asking questions, then so can my dad.”

According to Dotzert, another “major issue” with her case is that the university claims it is “private property,” but added that the incident happened in the visitor parking lot.

When it comes to trespass, the law in Ontario is clear in that institutions, including universities, can issue trespass notices as they see fit.

Dotzert does not see it this way and said, “It was a public university. If they are lying, if it is not private property, if it is in fact public property, which it’s a public university paid for with public dollars, if it’s public property, then they are violating the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and my freedom to assemble and also my father’s freedom to assemble.”

“If they do not take away these notices of trespasses, then we need to spread this thing as big as possible because this is disgusting. This is ridiculous. This was not hate speech. This was someone being unhappy with someone else’s tone and intent,” she added.

Dotzert said that she is “upset over this whole thing, a little bit perturbed because this is ridiculous.”

“And I hope to goodness I pray that they will repeal it for both of us. And if this was indeed public property, then there’s some big legal actions that we could really pursue with the University of Guelph for doing this to us, for literally threatening our freedom to assemble on public property,” she said. 

Dotzert added that she believes Canada is still a “free country” and it “wasn’t hate speech.” 

“You cannot call that hate speech. She cannot criminalize either of us for hate speech, especially when I didn’t speak,” she said. 

DEI rampant in Canadian universities thanks to gov’t funding 

As reported by LifeSiteNews, Canada’s universities under former Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and now under successor Mark Carney promised $110 million to fund DEI projects, many of which concern Canadian post-secondary institutions.

When it comes to woke ideology, the University of Guelph is no stranger to it. As reported by LifeSiteNews, a woke professor from the university recently claimed that the Olympic transgender ban will “harm women.”

Recent studies have shown that DEI hiring practices at most of Canada’s top universities are rampant.

In Alberta, the current Conservative government of Premier Danielle Smith has made clear that DEI hiring practices should be shelved. She even threatened to withdraw funding from universities that do not comply.

As a result, the University of Alberta said it will soon be reversing so-called diversity, equity, and inclusivity (DEI) policies in its hiring department.

LifeSiteNews has reported on many instances where qualified candidates or others were shut out and discriminated against at Canadian universities due to woke DEI agendas.

Conservative Party leader Pierre Poilievre has promised that, should he ever become prime minister, he would end government funding of “radical political ideologies” in higher education

Late last year, Canadian MPs learned that $4.5 billion a year in tax money is funding research grants for “far left” activists throughout multiple Canadian universities, according to one professor.