Editor:
The past few weeks have been traumatizing for many Canadians.
The discovery of more than 200 graves of Indigenous children lost at residential schools and the recent attack on a Muslim family that left four members dead and a child severely orphaned have hit us at our core.
For some, have shattered our image of a welcoming, uber-polite multicultural society that has long been a beacon of hope for the rest of the world in showing that yes, indeed people from all different backgrounds can co-exist in harmony.
As a practicing hijab-wearing Muslim woman, the tragic events in London, Ont. have been a source of shock and grief, but not any more so than the shock and grief that I feel for the loss of any innocent life. All life is sacred — whether it is a Muslim life, or the life of a Christian, Jew, Hindu, Sikh, agnostic or atheist.
In his farewell sermon, the Prophet Muhammad addressed the issue of racism and said that “a white has no superiority over a black, nor a black has any superiority over a white —except by piety and good action.”
In my mind, I don’t see the world divided by colours or one ethnicity over another; the only distinction is between good people and bad people.
I think it is time that good people from all faith and cultural backgrounds reach out to hold hands with one another and decide that we will once and for all not allow the actions of an evil few pit us against one another.
Recognizing that there is still a current of racism that flows in our society and realizing that terrible crimes have been committed against Indigenous peoples is an uncomfortable truth that none of us want to accept, but we need to face this truth in the eye and rectify the wrongs that have been done — only then can we move towards true healing and be the Canada that we can all proudly call home.
Tahira Tahir
