After the fire, lessons from Peterborough
“Peterborough,” she said. “Isn’t that the place where they tried to burn down the mosque?”
Then she told me that our city has earned a “black eye” in the wake of what appears to be a hate crime.
The situation looks very different to those who live and work in Peterborough, where everything that has happened since the arson has demonstrated that we are a community that embraces diversity, a community defined by its members’ care and concern for each other.
Other communities can learn from what happened here. What followed the fire was a veritable love-in, as local politicians, churches, community groups, students and the public reached out to provide support and space for the Masjid Al-Salaam community until the mosque was repaired.
Duane Rousselle, a PhD student, set up a crowd-funding webpage that aimed to raise $80,000 to repair the mosque. The website was shut down after only 30 hours, having exceeded its goal by $30,000.
At the university and elsewhere, plans to initiate fundraising campaigns to support the restoration of the mosque were quickly shelved because the money needed was raised so quickly.
Kenzu Abdella, the soft-spoken president of the mosque, was appreciative of the support the community demonstrated in the aftermath of the fire. “It has shown us Peterborough is amazing.”
Two weeks later, his community prayed the jumuah prayer at the Beth Israel Syn- agogue, the first time this appears to have happened in a synagogue in Canada. The president of the synagogue remarked, “There’s been so much bad press between Muslims and Jews, and we hope for a better world. We hope for peace and, in Canada, we’re neighbours.”
It is a sad comment on news reporting that the negative aspects of the fire have been overwhelmingly emphasized. I found mention of it in news media in the United States, Europe, Russia and Pakistan — most of it warning of Islamophobia, hate crimes, conflict and tensions between Muslims and the West.
Is it news that a region with the population of Peterborough (over 100,000) contains some xenophobic individuals? What is news is that the Peterborough community responded in an overwhelmingly positive way to the incident, highlighting a commitment to tolerance and a determination to be a community that welcomes everyone.
This lesson was lost in the wake of the tensions produced by the attacks in Paris. In Canada, such tensions have been tied to debates about the government’s plan to welcome 25,000 Syrian refugees.
Here again Peterborough is instructive. We are well positioned to receive refugees, with a network of community organizations ready and keen to help.
Our proximity to Toronto is a significant positive for immigrants, as are two postsecondary institutions — Trent University and Fleming College.
In a city with an aging population (the oldest population demographics in Canada), refugee families will bring opportunities for economic development that can be a boon to the community, as the GTA marches east toward us.
The key task ahead of us is to make sure that refugees are integrated in a way that makes their transition as smooth as possible.
In the long run, an investment in refugee resettlement will be an investment in our most valuable resource — human resources — that has the potential to pay enormous dividends in the long run. Those who favour closing the door on refugees should keep in mind that poverty, refugee camps, and uncertain and diminished prospects for the future are a breeding ground for young terrorists.
We can better build a secure future by providing tomorrow’s generation with productive lives in welcoming communities like Peterborough. Leo Groarke is president of Trent University.