Canada's Prime Minister, Trudeau, appoints Canada’s First Special Representative on Combatting Islamophobia
A statement issued by the Canadian Prime Minister's office said that journalist and activist Amira Al-Ghawabi will fill the position "to be an advocate, advisor, expert and representative to support and strengthen the federal government's efforts to combat Islamophobia, systemic racism, racial discrimination and religious intolerance."
Al-Ghawabi is a human rights activist, public relations officer at the Canadian Race Relations Foundation and columnist for the Toronto Star, having previously worked for more than a decade at CBC (CBC). CBC) Canadian Public Broadcasting.
In her new position, Al-Ghawabi will promote awareness of the diverse and intersecting identities of Muslims in Canada and advise the government in developing comprehensive policies, legislative proposals, programs and regulations that reflect their realities, helping to promote respect for equality, inclusion and diversity and highlighting the important contributions of Muslims to the Canadian national fabric, according to her. Prime Minister's statement.
For his part, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau praised - via Twitter - the appointment of Al-Ghawabi, which he saw as "an important step in our fight against Islamophobia and hate in all its forms."
"Diversity is really one of Canada's greatest strengths, but for many Muslims, Islamophobia is very familiar," he added.
Over recent years, a series of bloody attacks have targeted Canadian Muslims.
In June 2021, 4 members of a Muslim family were killed when someone ran them over with his truck in Ontario.
And 4 years before that, 6 Muslims were killed and 5 injured in an attack on a mosque in Quebec City.
In a series of tweets she posted on Thursday, El-Ghawabi listed the names of the people killed in the recent attacks, writing, "We must never forget."
The creation of the new position came as part of the recommendations of a national summit on Islamophobia organized by the federal government in June 2021 in response to these attacks.
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