Sherbrooke group hosts vigil denouncing Islamophobia
Abdelilah Hamdache, who spoke as part of the organizing committee, underlined the importance of bridging the gap between communities outside of times of tragedy.
About 100 people from the Eastern Townships community gathered at Sherbrooke’s Marché de la gare on Friday evening for a vigil organized in memory of the four members of the Afzaal family who were killed during an evening walk in London, Ontario in early June in what local police have said was a purposeful attack by a local man. The vigil was one of many that have taken place in communities across the country since the attack, which killed Talat Afzaal, her son Salman Afzaal, his wife Madiha Salman, and their daughter Yumna Afzaal, and left their nine year old son Fayez orphaned.
The Sherbrooke event, which was organized by a collection of local community organizations, drew participants young and old, as well as community leaders and local politicians from all levels of government. Members of Parliament Marie-claude Bibeau and Elizabeth Brière both addressed the crowd, as well as the Member of the National Assembly for the Saint-françois riding, Geneviève Hébert, and Sherbrooke Mayor Steve Lussier. All condemned the attack and acts of hatred and intolerance in general.
Abdelilah Hamdache, who spoke as part of the organizing committee, underlined the importance of bridging the gap between communities outside of times of tragedy.
“I don’t know what is worse,” Hamdache said, pointing out that often when the public eye turns to the Muslim community, it is either because someone is accusing them of being terrorists based on the actions of radical individuals, or because they have been victims of acts of hate, themselves.
“No one knows when he is going to die, but so long as we are alive we should live with dignity, with respect, and with love,” he said, underlining the need for mutual respect, and pointing out that a society can only truly achieve those ideals when all members work together to do so. “A citizen is someone who studies for society, who works for society, someone who helps and tries to improve society, no matter how long he or she has been here.”
Several of those present and speaking at the event used the opportunity to criticize the provincial government’s secularism law and the position that there is no such thing as systemic racism in the province, arguing that there is no mutual respect under a government that forces someone to choose between their career and their religion. One member of the crowd directly addressed Hébert on this point, calling on her to express this view to Premier François Legault directly.