Canada: Backlash over Trudeau’s ‘special representative’ to combat ‘Islamophobia’

In a trailblazing decision less than a week ago, Trudeau announced new “special representative to combat ‘Islamophobia,’” Amira Elghawaby. Her office will have a budget of $5,6000,000, according to spokesperson from the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion, Ahmed Hussen. Trudeau said in a statement: “No one in our country should experience hatred because of their faith,” yet his statement refers only to “Islamophobia,” when it should include all faiths.

The appointment is not being received with the welcome Trudeau might have expected. Already, headlines such as these have lit up the media circuit: Trudeau wants Amira Elghawaby to clarify remarks about Quebeckers (Globe and Mail), Legault government wants federal anti-Islamophobia adviser removed over Bill 21 comments (Montreal Gazette).  François Legault is the Premier of Quebec. The comment that is creating a stir is Elghawaby’s smear against Quebeckers that “Quebeckers seem to be ‘influenced’ by anti-Muslim sentiment.”

Canada’s official opposition leader, Conservative Pierre Poilievre, tweeted:

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Now that Trudeau has once again been busted for exacerbating divisions in Canada, he is backpedaling. Trudeau stated that “he did not agree with the remarks” of his own newly appointed “Islamophobia” representative.

Either Trudeau doesn’t do checks before appointing his cronies, or he’s showing that once he’s caught in the wrong, he steps aside and throws his cronies under the bus in order to save his own skin.

Canada does not need to be collectively harangued by an “Islamophobia” representative, or to fork over millions to fight this phenomenon. The very job which Amira Elghawaby has been given is problematic. It implies that Canada is “Islamophobic,” and that other forms of discrimination matter less.

The Western Standard reported:

When is the Christaphobia czar coming out of the Prime Minister’s Office? There’s an unhealthy degree of contempt for evangelical Christians and conservative Roman Catholics accreting from the Trudeau government but I don’t see the Liberals rushing to our assistance.

There is no such thing as a “phobia” against Muslims in the Canada to begin with. It is a grave insult to Canadians and an indictor of exactly what the prime minister thinks of the country. “Islamophobia” is a propaganda tool that is used to target anyone who offends the sensibilities of those Muslims who are inclined to see offense everywhere, or to claim to do so for political purposes.

Those who display anti-Muslim bigotry or any kind of bigotry and are potentially dangerous must be dealt with individually in accordance with the rule of law. There is due process for that. Special interest groups and individuals should not hijack this process. This hijacking was most evident after the tragic incident in 2021 in which four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario were run over and killed by 19-year-old Nathaniel Veltman. What should have followed was the arrest of Veltman, period. Instead, frenzied accusations ensued about Canada’s “Islamophobia”; this culminated in a national “emergency Islamophobia Summit.” In a low point for Canada, the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) released 61 groundbreaking recommendations for every level of government to fight “Islamophobia.” The Veltman case led to a mob-style lynching of Veltman before any due process was even began, let alone completed. The irrational response became a betrayal of a whole country; any observer from a foreign country could reasonably have concluded that in Canada, Muslims constantly live in danger of mass murder. Such hysteria is precisely what led to the creation of an “Islamophobia” representative.

The NCCM is a an offshoot of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). CAIR has established links to Hamas, according to the US Department of Justice. CAIR-CAN was renamed NCCM in a facelift, but remained the same organization. Elghawaby is a former Communications Director for the organization.

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Donations are made “in the cause of Allah,” as fi-sabillilah literally means:

The NCCM has campaigned for Canadian support to bash Israel’s alleged “expulsion of Palestinians from their homes and the attack on Palestinians worshipping in Al-Aqsa.” The organization has also sent out an inflammatory plea for Canadians to “send a letter to all federal leaders on how insufficient Canadas [sic] response has been on the crisis in Palestine.” It accuses Israel of:

Attacks on journalists; the bombing of humanitarian facilities, the killing of physicians, including those leading the fight against COVID in Palestine, the blockage again of humanitarian aid into Palestine; and the refusal to accept a ceasefire.

Elghawaby wrote an article, Conservatives should be wary of the company they keep, smearing Conservatives in Canada and even in the US. The title itself was presumptuous in naming individuals of whom Elghabaway disapproves, and arrogantly advising Canadians to stay away from them. Why? Because she and her cronies are watching them? Apparently so, given her new appointment. Included on her list were Dennis Prager, former Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and Andrew Scheer. I did not escape either, as she wrote: “…and Christine Douglass-Williams, former board member of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, who was fired by the federal government for her Islamophobic writings.” Ironically, Elghawaby now serves as a director of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, as well as Mohammed Hashim, who was described in the Toronto Sun as the “spin doctor” behind the infamous Toronto Danforth shooter, Faisal Hussain, and a “driving force behind the National Council of Canadian Muslims.” According to the Toronto Sun:

The man who has presented himself as the point of contact for the family of Faisal Hussain is a professional activist who has reportedly committed himself to “framing a new narrative of Muslims in Canada” and creating a “national political movement.”

Hashim once stated, in the aftermath of the jihad terror hostage-taking incident at a Texas synagogue: “If Jewish orgs were less supportive of Israel  then it would be easier to work with them.” Which Jewish orgs might those be? He does not say.

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In another report, Elghawaby slams Britain and viciously attacks the late Queen Elizabeth as a “racist.” She states: “Its very existence [UK] and survival is built upon the oppression it benefited from throughout its shameful history.” She continued that Britain is “one of the most powerful symbols of racial oppression.” As reported by the Western Standard, Elghawaby also wrote that “the monarchy in Canada should be dissolved because Queen Elizabeth II was racist.”

The West has made incredible strides on human rights, a fact which is conveniently omitted by its detractors as it allows itself to be beaten down perpetually over its past wrongs by those whose own hands are not clean. Jihad terror, oppression, and persecution are currently rampant globally. But the “Islamophobia” canard diverts attention from the multitude of current victims.

Canada has never been so divided, yet Justin Trudeau’s trademark phrase is “Diversity is our strength.” Just the opposite. Trudeau does not actually stand for genuine “diversity.” He insists that it has to be his way only.

Scrutiny of Elghawaby will likely increase, especially now that even Trudeau demands that she give account, in an effort to save his own face.

Under section 2 of the Charter, Canadians are free to follow the religion of their choice. In addition, they are guaranteed freedom of thought, belief and expression. Since the media are an important means for communicating thoughts and ideas, the Charter protects the right of the press and other media to speak out.

Canada does not need an expensive, non-elected arbiter of the freedom of speech to further vitiate the rights of its citizens.