NDP statement marking the third anniversary of the Quebec City mosque attack

QUEEN’S PARK — The NDP’s Anti-Racism critic, Laura Mae Lindo, released the following statement on the third anniversary of the Islamophobic attack on the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec (CCIQ), in which six men were murdered and a number of others critically injured:

“Today marks the third anniversary of the devastating Quebec City mosque shooting, an Islamophobic act of terrorism in which six congregants were murdered during evening prayers at the mosque.

Today we remember the six victims, whose lives were cruelly cut short by a senseless act of hatred:

Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42; Abdelkrim Hassane, 41; Khaled Belkacemi, 60; Aboubaker Thabti, 44; Azzeddine Soufiane, 57 and Ibrahima Barry, 39.

Our hearts and thoughts are with the victims’ loved ones, with the congregation of CCIQ and with Muslim communities across Quebec, Ontario and all of Canada, for whom the mourning of this profound loss must be lived every day. We are determined to take action against Islamophobia to ensure that Muslim communities may lead safe and joyful lives.

Islamophobia, racism and hatred have no place in Canada, and all of us must commit today and every day to eradicating them from our societies. On behalf of Ontario’s NDP, I encourage all Ontarians to stand together against the vile Islamophobia that precipitated this attack, and to strive every day for a more just, inclusive and loving society.”