'We don’t want another tragedy': Edmonton-Muslim community rallies for change

EDMONTON -

Hundreds of Edmontonians rallied and demanded action from all levels of government Friday evening following the attack of two Muslim sisters in St. Albert earlier this week.

The incident was the latest in a series of hate-motivated incidents police in Edmonton and across Canada are investigating.

The rally was organized by the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM).

Amira Shousha, NCCM regional lead for Alberta, said in an interview that the rally was meant to showcase the Muslim community’s anger that street attacks continue to happen in Canada.

“We are all here to show solidarity to the ones who have been hurt and to verbalize our distaste for what is happening,” she said.

The group hopes to see all levels of government work together on an action plan to protect racialized Albertans and rid communities across Canada of Islamophobia.

Shousha said the NCCM is calling on all levels of government to form a new bipartisan committee to create coordinated responses to Islamophobia with representation of all ethnic and religious communities.

“We won’t let hate win,” she said. “We want to be able to go out on a walk with our family and not be hurt.

“These attacks are getting worse, they’re getting more bold. And now, most recently, there was a weapon involved in the last attack.”

While the UCP provided funding to help give places of worship security upgrades and a motion at the Alberta legislature recommending the bylaws regarding street harassment and hate crimes be reviewed passed, Shousha said racialized communities need stronger action now.

“(Those) are great first steps,” she said. “We are all on edge. Myself as a Muslim hijabi woman, I am taking extra precautions to make sure that I am not alone when I am, even just in broad daylight, going for a walk.”

She said that there were concerns that even people who wanted to attend the rally would not be safe.

“That anxiety is not new, but it is getting to a level that is really intense,” Shousha added. “That fear shouldn’t be in our community.”

Myriam St-Germain said she attended the rally to help show support for those affected by hate and demand change so that no one has to feel fearful when they want to go out in public.

“We are all human beings. We should live in peace together side-by-side and support each other,” she said.

 “We don’t want another tragedy,” she added. “We don’t want them to win.”

HATE-MOTIVATED ATTACKS IN THE REGION

There have been at least eight apparently hate-motivated attacks on Muslim women within the Edmonton area since the end of last year that have been reported.

According to data provided to CTV News Edmonton from the Edmonton Police Service (EPS), hate-motivated crimes involving people are already on pace to surpass the amount committed in 2020.

In 2021, there have been 21 hate-motivated crimes involving people and 23 involving property, EPS says.

According to EPS, the total in 2020 for hate-motivated crimes involving people was 23 and 37 involved property.

For 2019, there were 30 hate-motivated crimes involving people and 27 involved property.

Earlier this month, a woman in her 50s was out for a walk when she was approached from behind and thrown to the pavement. 

In April, police said an Edmonton Muslim family was targeted in a road rage incident where a driver allegedly "made a profane gesture" at a woman wearing a hijab. 

In March, an Edmonton man was charged in connection with three apparent hate-motivated incidents including verbally abusing a teenager who was wearing a hijab while waiting at a transit centre and hurling insults a woman wearing a burqa.  

In February, police said a woman in a hijab was threatened by a man at the Century Park LRT station. 

And in December last year, an Edmonton man was charged after what police called a "hate-motivated" attack on two Somali women in the Southgate Centre parking lot. 

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Matthew Black