The Alberta Muslim Public Affairs Council (AMPAC) held a multi-faith gathering at City Hall Thursday to condemn the New Zealand attacks and ask the federal government to crack down on extremist groups.
Last Friday, 50 people were killed when a gunman went into two mosques in Christchurch during prayers.
From Muslim to Jewish people, those who attended City Hall are frustrated at the continuous attacks.
“May it be from New Zealand in Christchurch, to Pittsburgh with our Jewish brothers and sisters, to the South Carolina of our black brothers and sisters of the southern Baptist church, and the list goes on,” AMPAC Vice President Momin Saeed said.
And while those attacks happened far away from Edmonton, Muslims fear for their safety and claim to experience negative interactions in Alberta.
“We see hateful rhetoric, hate-filled actions here in Edmonton and across our province here every day,” said Adil Hasan, AMPAC’s communications vice president.
AMPAC wants the federal government to be tougher on a particular group.
“We ask immediately from the federal government that they list the 3 Percenters on the listed terrorist entities schedule,” Saeed said.
The council also wants Ottawa to fund the deradicalization of white supremacist groups.
“They need to be taught and re-educated and reintegrated in society.”
