By Asad Ali
After several Muslim university and high school students experienced Islamophobia in the classroom and in public places, including a teacher instructing that terrorism is based on Islam, they organized a public forum titled "Je Suis Moi". The forum was through the auspices of the Islamic Society of St. Catharines as well as the Qamar Foundation, a youth-oriented charity.
In addition to youth panelists detailing their local experiences, the event included spoken word performances. A "community leaders" panel included a historian, a social scientist studying media monopolization, a speaker from the Canadian Peace Congress, as well as the imam (prayer leader) of the local mosque and a specialist in inter-faith dialogue.
Historian Dr. Samah Marie gave examples from Islamic history of co-existence and religious diversity which contradict Islamophobic myths being inflamed by media coverage of the "Islamic State". Communications specialist Dr. Scott Henderson talked about the danger of monopolistic concentration of media in Canada which makes it difficult to challenge racism. Saleh Waziruddin of the Niagara Coalition for Peace and an executive member of the Canadian Peace Congress explained that the biggest misconception was that radicalization comes from religion, as those who have been arrested said they were radicalized by the wars. FBI and European data shows Muslims are responsible for only 6% of terrorist attacks in the US and 2% in Europe over the last 10 years. In response to an audience question he explained that "Jihadist" is an Islamophobic term because it uses a pillar of the faith, Jihad which means struggle, as a derogatory term.
Audience members asked about how to stop people from going to Canada to the "Islamic State", and answers ranged from pointing out the greater number of Canadian troops being sent by the government, as well as the need to address racism and the wars as causes of radicalization. The context of the impending danger from Bill C-51, driven by Islamophobia and racist coverage in the mainstream media, was spelled out at the forum, as well as the need to counter it through panel discussions such as "Je Suis Moi" as well as demonstrations and letters to the editor.
(The above article is from the April 1-15, 2015 issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)
