QUEEN’S PARK – Marit Stiles, Leader of the Official Opposition NDP, and Deputy Leader, MPP Doly Begum (Scarborough Southwest), observe and honour the National Day of Remembrance of the Quebec City Mosque Attack and Action against Islamophobia:
“Today we remember Ibrahima Barry, Mamadou Tanou Barry, Khaled Belkacemi, Abdelkrim Hassane, Azzedine Soufiane, and Aboubaker Thabti, whose lives were brutally taken during evening prayers in 2017”, said Stiles. “It was a violent act of hate that left all of us deeply shaken, most especially Muslim Ontarians. Today we honour their memories, and we reflect on how much work remains to be done to ensure Muslims in Ontario are safe in their homes, in their mosques and in their communities. As the Leader of the Ontario NDP, I want to reaffirm our commitment to combating Islamophobia.”
“It’s been seven years since the hateful Islamophobic attack on worshippers at the Centre Culturel Islamique de Quebec in Sainte-Foy,” said Begum. “In the years since, instead of a decline in Islamophobia and intolerance, we’ve seen an alarming increase. It’s a sobering reminder of the work that remains as we work together to create a safer Ontario for the Muslim community.”