Canada has appointed its first special envoy to combat Islamophobia. This post was created in the wake of several recent attacks against Muslims in the country.
According to the Prime Minister’s statement, journalist and activist Amira Al-Gawabi “supports and strengthens the federal government’s efforts to combat
Islamophobia, systemic racism, racism, and religious intolerance. This position is to serve as an advocate, advisor, expert and representative to serve the federal government, the secretary’s office announced.
An active human rights activist, Algoabi is the head of communications for the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, a columnist for the Toronto Star, and previously worked for the CBC public broadcaster for more than ten years.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau hailed Alghavabi’s appointment as “an important step in the fight against Islamophobia and all forms of hatred.”
“Diversity is really one of Canada’s greatest strengths, but Islamophobia is all too familiar to many Muslims,” he added.
A series of deadly attacks have targeted Canada’s Muslim community in the past few years. In June 2021, four members of a Muslim family were killed when a truck ran over them in London, Ontario.
Four years ago, six Muslims were killed and five wounded in an attack on a mosque in Quebec City.
In a series of tweets on Thursday, al-Gawabi mentioned the names of those killed in the recent attacks and added: “We must never forget.”
The creation of new jobs was recommended at a national Islamophobia summit hosted by the federal government in June 2021 following the attacks.
