| The recent arrests of 17 Ontario men for an alleged terrorist plot against Canadian targets has raised concern in the wider Muslim community that once again, as experienced after 9/11, all Muslims risk being tarred by the actions of a small group of radical fundamentalists.
The Muslim Council of Calgary and the Calgary Committee on Race Relations and Cross Cultural Understanding are holding a planning session on June 22 to try and come up with an action plan to address any potential backlash against Muslim Calgarians due to such events.
Imam Alaa Elsayed, one of the organizers, says there haven’t been many incidents in Calgary where Muslims have been targeted in relation to the alleged terrorist attack. However, the day that the 17 men were arrested, six men and two women walked into a Calgary mosque and began making derogatory comments to the worshippers. Elsayed says windows have also been broken on buses from the Calgary Islamic School, but he’s unsure if that’s connected to the Ontario terrorist plot.
"We want to be sure to raise awareness and educate, so it’s more of a preventative measure and a proactive matter by defeating our number one enemy, which is ignorance," says Elsayed. "When we associate an act of an individual that belongs to a faith with the teachings of a faith, it’s a grave mistake."
Elsayed says he finds it offensive when the media uses terms such as Islamic terrorist or Islamic jihadist. He says the media doesn’t link other religions with extremist action.
"No one dared to call the IRA Christian terrorists," he says. "Islam obviously has nothing to do with violence and terrorism."
He’d like to see a national ad campaign that emphasizes inclusion of all Canadians, regardless of their race or religion, so people are less inclined to "paint people with the same brush."
Elsayed adds that Canada has to move beyond simply "tolerance" of Muslim Canadians to acceptance.
"Acceptance is meaning that you accept we are part of what makes the beautiful mosaic of Canada and this is our home, so no one would say, ‘go home’ because this is our home," he says.
Vilma Dawson, executive director of the Calgary Committee on Race Relations and Cross Cultural Understanding, says she’s concerned that an "entire community is being scapegoated and stereotyped as a result of the actions of a few, whether it be in Toronto or worldwide, and an entire faith is being basically doubted, sneered at."
She adds that after 9/11, there was a "severe backlash" against the Muslim community.
"Young women who were studying at the U of C were so terrified of even going to attend classes for fear of reprisal, and there were several incidents where young women actually had their hijabs pulled off. One young woman that I know at that point in time had a can of beer thrown into her face while somebody was driving by."
"To avoid a potential situation like that, what we need to do is to have heightened education. People need to understand that this is not Islam. This is to do with a group of radical fundamentalists," she says.
She agrees with Elsayed that the media doesn’t link any other religious faith to extremist acts.
"When the Oklahoma bombing took place, not every white, middle-class male was targeted. Why are we targeting all Muslims in the community?" she asks. "You can’t judge a faith based on the actions of a group of fundamentalists worldwide."
Dawson says she’s also disturbed by the fact that some members of the media have been suggesting that the alleged terrorist attack shows that multiculturalism isn’t working and Canada needs to revisit its policies.
"I think what’s happening is racism is alive and well. This is not about multiculturalism. This is about racism now raising its ugly head," she says.
All the men arrested in the alleged terrorist plot in Ontario were either Canadian citizens or longtime residents. Dawson says Canadians have to ask themselves why a homegrown terrorist plot came into being.
"If people continue to be marginalized and continue to be ostracized, there is a potential for retaliation. As there’s a potential for backlash there’s also a potential for retaliation and that’s what we need to worry about," she says, adding that there should be more of a focus on anti-racism so that all Canadians feel included in their society. |
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