"Keep Religion Out of Public Schools"

"It is deeply troubling to see elected officials participate in meetings where they do not challenge people advocating to deny the human rights of fellow Canadians based on irrational fear and hatred."
Ihsaan Gardee, executive director, National Council of Canadian Muslims

"This meeting was about the place of religion in public schools. That meeting was attended by a number of people from a number of different groups, including people from Rise Canada."
"Kellie does not believe that this longstanding Canadian practice [of keeping religion separate from education in public schools] should be changed to accommodate one group.”
"She is committed to building a country that promotes the shared values of hard work, generosity, freedom, tolerance, equality of opportunity and equality of the individual. That includes the freedom to practise your religion and the responsibility to be tolerant of other people's religions."
Michael Diamond, spokesperson, Conservative leadership candidate Leitch

A YouTube video shows Conservative leadership candidate Kellie Leitch at an event with members of Rise Canada in Brampton on Sunday.  (RISE CANADA/YOUTUBE)

"We don't support or promote activities/dialogue against any religion or faith. We respect all."
"This was a free event and everyone was free to ask questions."
Concerned Parents of Canada

"This was an open public meeting where anyone could attend. We and many others heard about this meeting and attended. Other groups and individuals were present and spoke before Dr. Leitch arrived."
"And of course at the meeting anyone could raise their hand and ask questions."
Jennifer Bushmill, Rise Canada

Ihsaan Gardee speaks of irrational fear and hatred as a backlash by non-Muslims that people like him like to label "Islamophobia". There is nothing irrational about being inspired to fear terrorism, and terrorist acts that take place all over the globe as are all connected to Islam for the most part; at least the vast preponderance are, and the linkage of Islam and its sectarian and jihadist violence against other Muslims as well as non-Muslims through conflicts and blood-letting throughout the Middle East and North Africa and southwestern Asia is indisputable.

The spillovers of violently aggressive Islamist jihad into Europe and North America and elsewhere represent issues that non-Muslims deal with in obvious connections with Islam and terrorism. So it is hardly irrational to react to all these manifestations of Islam-inspired violence. And nor does that reaction or questioning of Islam denote unreasoning hatred or the label of "Islamophobic", a term which fundamentalist Islamist groups themselves favour in an effort to turn the tables on critics of Islam as biased racists to silence them for fear of earning such a label.

Conservative leadership candidate Kellie Leitch appeared at a site in Brampton, Ontario last Sunday where she interacted with other people who had decided to show up at a rally whose purpose was to decry that public schools were becoming sites where Islamic prayer sessions were being conducted to service Muslim children and youth. Canada has no such tradition of turning over public schools for multiple use as prayer sites, and nor should any such public institution of a secular government paid for through universal taxes become such a site.

Present at the gathering was a controversial organization which considers Islam "a barbaric ideology" and in a democratic society free to express opinions of this sort, it is hardly surprising that citizens, based on what can be seen and attributed to Islam, feel its practices deserve that description. The Rise Canada group has taken it upon itself to counter mosque construction in Mississauga, Ontario. It was Concerned Parents of Canada, however, that arranged for this event to discuss their opposition to religious events taking place in Canadian schools.

Ron Banerjee, director of the Canadian Hindu Advocacy group introduced himself to Kellie Leitch on this occasion. He happened also to address the gathering, speaking of "Sharia creep". Indeed, a decade or so ago, Muslim groups in Ontario were intent on persuading the province to legitimize Sharia; in the end this was averted because of public backlash, but the effort continues, with both Muslim MPPs and MPs advancing the Islamist agenda by introducing motions to their legislatures condemning "Islamophobia".

That absurd labelling and its connotations are now so well engrained in people's consciousness, making them squeamish about wearing such a label imposed should they question anything about Islam, that it has become popular to support a motion such as this in the House of Commons, despite that a majority of Canadians, put to a vote would reject it.

As for promulgating hatred, and failing in the Canadian equality and pluralism values of respecting other religions, Islam fails on both counts. It was only last month that it was revealed that a mosque in Toronto and another in Montreal preached division and hatred and violence at Friday sermons, which were also posted in videos online. And where was the protesting Mr. Gardee then, let alone other Muslims choosing to defend the rights of others?

On February 18, 2017 CIJnews exposed excerpts from supplications (originally in Arabic) recited by Aymen Elkasrawy and Shaykh Abdool Hamid at Masjid Toronto mosque in 2016:

O Allah! We ask you… [to give us] victory over the enemies. O Allah! Raise the standing of Islam and the Muslims. O Allah! Give victory (help) to your oppressed slaves all over the world, east to west. O Allah! Give victory (help) to your slaves who believe in the oneness of Allah, O the Lord of the Worlds! O Allah! Destroy the criminals. O Allah! Destroy anyone who inflicts injustice on your slaves, O the Lord of the Worlds! O Allah! Count their number; slay them one by one and spare not one of them. O Allah! Do not defer [it] on them.O Allah! Seize them with the seizure of One Mighty, Omnipotent [referring to a Quranic verse that deals with the punishment Allah inflicted on Pharaoh and his people].

[O Allah!] Give us victory over the disbelieving people… O Allah! Give victory to Islam and raise the standing the Muslims. And humiliate the polytheism and polytheists. O Allah! Give victory (help) to your slaves who believe in the oneness of Allah, O the Lord of the Worlds!O Allah! Give them victory over the criminal people. O Allah! Destroy anyone who killed Muslims. O Allah! Destroy anyone who displaced the sons of the Muslims. O Allah! Count their number; slay them one by one and spare not one of them. O Allah! Purify Al-Aqsa Mosque from the filth of the Jews! O Allah! Purify Al-Aqsa Mosque from the filth of the Jews!

O Allah! Raise the standing of Islam and the Muslims.And humiliate the polytheism, the polytheists, the infidels and the atheists. And Give victory (help) to your slaves who believe in the oneness of Allah.O Allah! Give victory to our oppressed and deprived Muslim brothers and the mujahideen (those who engage in jihad) everywhere.O Allah! Pour on them patience and steadfast their feet. And give them victory over the disbelieving people. And give them victory over the evildoersAnd give them victory over the criminals.

See also:

• Supplications at Masjid Toronto Mosque: “Slay them one by one and spare not one of them” (click HERE)

Images on social media showed protesters carrying signs with anti-Muslim slogans as worshippers were entering a Toronto mosque.  Facebook

The photograph shown above represents reaction to the hate-mongering at Canadian mosques and the selective conscience of human-rights-demanding Muslims who fail to regard that fundamental right as reflecting universal rights, not rights specific to Muslims.