"This is not an isolated case; it reflects a broader systemic pattern in which activists who expose systemic discrimination are targeted with smear campaigns meant to intimidate and silence them. Yet, despite the backlash, Elghawaby refuses to be silenced. She released The Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combating Islamophobia at a time when acknowledging Islamophobia is met with hostility."
March 14, 2025
I am writing in response to Laura Ryckewaert’s article on Amira Elghawaby, Canada’s Special Representative on Combating Islamophobia. In a media landscape where minority perspectives are often buried at the end of articles or dismissed altogether, I appreciate that The Hill Times gave prominence to the controversy surrounding Bill 21—particularly the calls, including from the Quebec government itself, for Elghawaby’s resignation over an op-ed she co-authored criticizing the law. As a Muslim myself, I cannot help but see Bill 21 for what it truly is: not a defense of secularism, but an institutionalized form of discrimination that targets religious minorities by barring government employees from wearing symbols like the hijab.
It is very unfortunate that Elghawaby has faced relentless attacks—not for any misconduct, but challenging state policies that marginalize religious minorities. This is not an isolated case; it reflects a broader systemic pattern in which activists who expose systemic discrimination are targeted with smear campaigns meant to intimidate and silence them. Yet, despite the backlash, Elghawaby refuses to be silenced. She released The Canadian Guide to Understanding and Combating Islamophobia at a time when acknowledging Islamophobia is met with hostility.
Instead of questioning the legitimacy of her position; however, we should be asking: why is there such fierce resistance to confronting Islamophobia in Canada?
Lynn Naji
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East