They tried to cancel him — but four years later, teacher Gorian Surlan has won back his job.
In a ruling last week, a labour arbitrator ordered the TDSB to reinstate the white Parkdale Collegiate teacher and pay him almost two years in back wages after firing him in 2021 for coming to school in “blackface” in his misguided attempt at a zombie-like “scary persona” for Halloween.
Born in Serbia, Surlan came to Canada in 1992 and insisted he wasn’t aware of the racist connotations when he innocently painted his face black to match his all-black attire that day.
With students and parents in an uproar, marches held and petitions signed demanding his job, the TDSB launched an investigation. Two weeks later, they fired him after finding the impact on the school and community was “ severe, lon