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After hearing news of the mosque shooting in Quebec City, Masuma Khan felt it was important for members of the Dalhousie Muslim Student Association to “take matters into our own hands” by organizing a vigil.
“The Muslim students here at Dal are sort of in a sense of panic and sorrow,” says Khan, the association’s president. “The only way that we can really address this issue is by uniting our community as one.”
On Sunday night, a shooter—or shooters, many details are still unknown—opened fire at the Centre Culturel Islamique de Québec during evening prayers. According to the Montreal Gazette, six people are dead while another five are in critical condition.
Prime minister Justin Trudeau and Sûreté du Québec have called the shooting a terrorist attack.
“I came to campus feeling scared—some other Muslim students came to campus feeling scared,” says Khan. “I think we really need to just address what’s going on and sort of heal together and stand together.”
At least three local vigils are scheduled in the wake of the shooting. Saint Mary’s University held a moment of silence at the campus art gallery at 12:30pm. Dal’s will take place at 4pm and a candlelight vigil organized by city hall will be held in Grand Parade Square at 6pm.
Khan says she and the rest of the association are hoping to see solidarity among students during Monday afternoon’s event, but that it’s important to support any of the vigils, regardless of who is putting it on. The event at Dalhousie is meant to focus on acknowledging on-campus Islamophobia and working to make the university a safe space for the Muslim students.
Going forward, says Khan, people outside the community should work to educate themselves and support “your Muslim brothers and sisters.” She also mentioned a Hijab day presentation and Q&A taking place at Dalhousie on Wednesday: a good opportunity for people to start that education.
“If you see someone who’s been attacked for being Muslim; stand up. Do something,” says Khan. “I think having these expectations or saying ‘This is the least you can do’ is reasonable.”
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This article appears in Jan 26 – Feb 1, 2017.
“people outside the community should work to educate themselves”
If education was the solution, we would all be color blind by now…
What happened in Quebec is just disgusting and my heart goes out to those families/community for their loss.
Why is the first statement in this piece a quotation of someone having to “take matters into our own hands”? Someone had to organize it, and it kinda stands to reason that the Dalhousie Muslim Students Association would organize a vigil at Dalhousie, just like members of the LGBTQ community organized a vigil after the attacks at Pulse nightclub in Florida. I don’t think anyone tried to stop them, did they? The statement “taking matters into our own hands” is usually reserved for situations where all other measures have been exhausted, therefore someone “took matters into their own hands”. Honestly, it really tainted the piece for me because it starts out with an almost accusatory tone, making me feel like I have something to apologize for, then ends with “people outside the community should work to educate themselves and support your Muslim brothers and sisters. “, another jab at some imagined lack of support.
There is something to be said for being gracious for the support you do receive, like the two other vigils within walking distance of each other, and not pointing out that we (non Muslims) need to be more educated. Well, I’m here to tell you I don’t need to be educated to live my hate free life, and take offense to being told that I do. As part of the Muslim community, do you educate yourselves on the Christian religion? Or Buddhist? Or any other ridiculous faith based foolishness? As an atheist, I may come off as insensitive, but religion is a choice that has little to do with who you are, and I judge people as individuals, not communities, races or religions making my education of any religion moot.