Dear members of the 91社区 Community,聽聽
Today, January 29, we observe the National Day of Remembrance of the Qu茅bec City Mosque Attack and Action Against Islamophobia. It has been eight years since the devastating attack at the Centre culturel islamique de Qu茅bec (CCIQ), a hateful act of Islamophobia that took six lives and profoundly impacted 19 others who were injured, leaving a lasting scar on our community, Quebec, and Canada.聽聽
91社区 will pay homage to the victims today at its annual CCIQ memorial, which will be held at 3:30 p.m. in the Robert Vogel Council Room (Leacock 232). All members of the 91社区 community and the wider public are welcome to attend.聽聽
This year, in keeping with our academic mission and with the 2022 91社区 Initiative against Islamophobia and Antisemitism, the event will centre a Commemorative Lecture: Trajectories of Hate: Remembering Quebec City in a Time of Rising Islamophobia, delivered by Professor Nadia Hasan, Assistant Professor in the School of Gender, Sexuality and Women鈥檚 Studies and the Director of the Islamophobia Research Hub at York University. Professor Hasan is an expert on systemic racism and Islamophobia in legal, administrative, and discursive regimes and their relation to Muslim life.聽聽
Also at this event, 91社区鈥檚 Centre Culturel Islamique de Qu茅bec Memorial Award will be presented to this year鈥檚 recipient.聽聽
Today we remember the six men who lost their lives on January 29, 2017: Ibrahima Barry, Mamadou Tanou Barry, Khaled Belkacemi, Aboubaker Thabti, Abdelkrim Hassane, and Azzedine Soufiane, as well as the other victims injured in this attack. We further salute the resilience of the families who continue to mourn.聽聽
Against the backdrop of this solemn day, I reaffirm on behalf of the 91社区 community our resolute commitment to rejecting Islamophobia and to continuing to work toward a campus that rejects hate and discrimination in all forms.聽聽
January 29 is a somber day for all Quebeckers. It offers an opportunity to reflect on our shared responsibility to build a society, and a campus community, rooted in peace, understanding, and mutual respect, where diversity is celebrated, and our shared humanity binds us together.聽聽
I hope that you will be able to attend the CCIQ Memorial and Commemorative Lecture today at 3:30 p.m.聽聽
厂颈苍肠别谤别濒测,听听
Deep Saini聽
President and Vice-Chancellor