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Today is the anniversary of the Jan 29, 2017 shooting that killed Azzedine Soufiane, Khaled Belkacemi, Abdelkrim Hassane, Aboubaker Thabti, Mamadou Tanou Barry and Ibrahima Barry, gravely injuring others including Aymen Derbali and changing the lives of their families - thread
1. My thoughts go to the families and community that was so violently assaulted by this tragic incident, echoes of which continue to ripple through the judicial system with the conviction, sentencing and appeal of the perpetrator of this act.
2. As with the December 6th massacre in Montreal, one is left with a sense of profound and incomprehensible loss as to how a violent man could target a certain group and take so many vibrant lives, shattering their community interrupting their connections with those around them.
3. Shooting sprees and mass murdering rampages are not unknown in Canada, but those with connection to a perverse ideology that seeks to exterminate people on the basis of their personal characteristics must give us pause. Not to dissect the individualized mental health issues..
of the shooter, but rather to consider the social and environmental context that gave life to the ideas and ideologies that could make such murderous and xenophobic rage even remotely tenable in Canadian society.
4. For Muslim communities in Canada, the social and political context that gives rise to Islamophobia is not simply historical - it continues today. Take for example the brazen comments of @BlocQuebecois against @OmarAlghabra simply because of his links to CAF, a secular orgn
5. Or the flagrant attacks against hijab wearing Muslim women at Southgate Mall in Edmonton on two occasions in close proximity to each other. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/edmonton-black-muslim-attack-racism-politics-1.5863547
6. The material impacts of ideologies of hate are not simply bred by hate fueled men who wield guns, but rather they are crafted by politicians for political gain. They are designed in order to abstract and "cut out" people from the social context that makes them human.
7. The Canadian state continues to apologize for historical reverberations of past ideologies inspired by white supremacy like: residential schools, the Komagata Maru incident and the continuous journey requirement and the Chinese head tax. These are all dehumanizing policies.
8. We cannot prevent isolated and misguided individuals from picking up arms in support of xenophobic hate, but we can fight normalizing discourses that fuel hate and give an agenda to fascism, white supremacy, misogyny and Islamophobia.
9. In reflecting on the tragic loss that happened 4 years ago, I am inspired by the strong voices of support that critically reflect on Islamophobia in Canada. My respect to @nccm @HarshaWalia @ICLMG @AmnestySecurity @GaryWKinsman @JohnOCAP @PaulChampLaw Alnoor Gova and others.
10. As compared to where we were 20 years ago, I believe that the movement against Islamophobia has evolved and become increasingly more robust. see for eg.: http://islamophobia-is.com/watch/ and https://www.wlu.ca/academics/faculties/faculty-of-arts/faculty-profiles/jasmin-zine/canadian-islamophobia-industry-research-project/index.html
11. We already have the legal tools necessary to fight Islamophobia in Canada. We are now developing a nuanced and clear articulation of the social context of what makes Islamophobia. This social science work will provide an important segue for the sensitivity of how ...
Islamophobia must be addressed - not simply reactively, but by proactively understanding its rootedness in Canadian society. This more sophisticated response situates the political manifestations and catalysts of Islamophobia, which include anti-Palestinian human rights animus.
12. Thank you to everyone who has been part of the movement and coalition of organizations fighting against Islamophobia in Canada. The work of allies and joint struggles continues to illuminate both subtle and blatant forms of systemic racism which honors the memory of Jan 29.
