Standing Up for Shared Values and Combatting Islamophobia
By Amira Elghawaby
Sep/Oct 2024
Canada is facing a test that requires standing up for the rights of all people, including Muslims, to live with dignity, and free of discrimination.
Canadians can succeed by upholding our stated values of diversity and inclusion, where people from all backgrounds feel seen, are treated fairly, and valued for their contributions. Or we will fail if we permit divisions to take root, amidst rising Islamophobia, antisemitism, anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism, and curtailment of civil liberties.
The crucial context is that Muslim communities in Canada, along with other faith communities and allies, are experiencing ongoing anguish and frustration at the lack of meaningful action to uphold international humanitarian law in relation to Palestinian human rights and, urgently, to end the devastating war in Gaza which continues to rage at the time of writing.
Over the past several months, many within Canada’s diverse Muslim communities feel they have been thrown back twenty years to the post 9/11 era. An era some of us remember all too well: when we had to prove our loyalty to Canada, prove we were “good” Muslims, and accept that racial profiling and discrimination were the new normal; when we could expect our civil liberties to be suspended at any time.
Young Muslims born after 9/11 have been brought face to face with the insidious ways that Islamophobia, anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism can delegitimize their participation in civil society, even leading to school or university suspensions/expulsions, termination, doxxing, and other egregious forms of silencing and intimidation.
Islamophobia is a global phenomenon and pre-dates 9/11. It includes bias, stereotypes, discrimination, and hate, as well as the view that Muslims pose a disproportionate security threat. Even though Canada has a world-renowned reputation for multiculturalism and pluralism, Islamophobia is a daily reality for Canadian Muslims. Anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism are forms of racism that intersect with, or fuel, Islamophobia (and vice versa).
In Canada, Islamophobia has been deadly. Our country has the heartbreaking distinction of having the highest number of deadly targeted attacks on Muslims of any G7 country. There was the 2017 shooting at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City, that took the lives of six men; the 2020 stabbing of a Toronto mosque caretaker; and the 2021 terrorist van attack in London, Ontario, that took the lives of four members of the same family — three generations – leaving a young boy orphaned.
Canada Creates Special Office
It was following the attack on the Afzaal family, who are fondly remembered as Our London Family, Canada’s federal government convened the 2021 National Summit on Islamophobia. Among community recommendations was creating an Office of the Special Representative Combatting Islamophobia. I was appointed in January 2023, following a lengthy 20-year career working in journalism and advocacy.
My office has a mandate to provide expert community-informed advice to the Federal government, promote awareness and education on Islamophobia, and develop training tools. In my first year I have had the privilege of travelling across Canada, visiting with Muslim communities. I have heard first-hand their achievements, struggles, and frustrations.
After the Hamas attacks on Israel and Israel’s subsequent bombardment of Gaza, Muslims are feeling pain, grief, and fear. I have met with Palestinians who have lost up to 300 family members from Israeli strikes. The enormity of what we are seeing in Gaza is a lot to bear. Islamophobia in Canada has skyrocketed; the National Council of Canadian Muslims has reported a rise of 1300% in cases of discrimination and hate (“The National Council of Canadian Muslims reports a 1300 per cent increase in the number of hate incidents since Oct. 7”, Montreal Gazette, Nov. 13, 2023). Some media and public discourses have positioned pro-Palestinian supporters as terrorist sympathizers.
Muslims in Canada feel unheard, that their perspectives are being ignored or minimized. I have conveyed these messages in my meetings with various government departments, deputy ministers, ministers, and the Prime Minister.
My efforts this year have included raising awareness within the federal public service, with the wider public and engaging institutional leaders.
Prior to the start of the devastating war, our office hosted the Canadian launch of the Understanding Anti-Muslim Hate Crimes-Addressing the Security Needs of Muslim Communities: A Practical Guide. The international guide provides an analysis of security risks and is aimed at improving the ability of police forces and other institutions to protect Muslim communities and individuals.
At the start of Islamic History Month last October, we launched a downloadable poster series celebrating the contributions of Muslim women and girls. The series was based on focus groups held with women and girls from Edmonton, Alberta, following a series of hate-motivated attacks on visibly Muslim women, many who were also Black. The images were displayed in a local transit station and on buses with the tagline: “Individual safety is all of our responsibility.”
Canada’s Minister of Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, Kamal Khera, often reminds Canadians that: “Diversity is a fact in Canada and inclusion is a choice.”
The time to put those words into action is now. Together, Canadians have an opportunity to shape a country that is free of Islamophobia, anti-Indigenous racism, antisemitism, anti-Black racism, anti-Asian racism — any and all forms of bias and hatred. We can work towards helping fulfill Canada’s vision of itself as a country where everyone can participate fully and contribute to their fullest potential.
We can and must pass this test.
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Amira Elghawaby is Canada’s Special Representative on Combatting Islamophobia
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