Faith leaders from across Calgary gathered at a local Islamic school on Thursday in a show of support against threats made via email. The MAC Islamic School of Calgary received two emails containing explicit “threats to kill Muslims, including children,” and called for “violence against Muslim communities, and warned Muslims to leave Canada.” “Every child has the right to go to school, to learn and to grow in a safe environment,” said the school’s director, Mazen Jichi. The letter attacks the community with a series of racial remarks and suggests change if Alberta separates from Canada. CTV News has chosen not to replicate the statements made in the letter for this story. The emails were sent to the school’s administration email address on Sept. 20 and Oct. 6. “Our community doesn’t accept that hatred speech, that violent speech,” said Jichi. “It’s about violence; it’s a threat to kill.” The gathering took place at the school’s Bridgeland campus during the noon hour. There is also a MAC Islamic School of Calgary in Ranchlands. Faith leaders and community members came together to support the school. “When hatred is directed toward one of our communities, we do not have to face it alone,” said Rev. Samaya Oakley, minister at Calgary Unitarians. “Our presence is a simple way of saying, ‘We see you. We care about what has happened. We are here with you.’” Oakley says the gathering is intended to show the Muslim community that other faith communities are standing with them. Students were happy to see faith leaders come together to help combat the hateful messaging. “It’s not acceptable for threats to come to us. We should be able to stand up as a community,” said Grade 9 student Sarah Ragab. “It’s really hurtful to know that people are trying to come at us and they’re trying to have an impact on us.” The Calgary Police Service’s hate crime prevention team says it is investigating a series of threatening emails sent to Islamic schools across Canada, including one school in Calgary. “Investigators are working closely with policing partners across the country to assess and respond to the situation,” CPS said in a statement. Since the start of the year, the CPS hate crime prevention team “has seen a 26 per cent increase over the average volume observed between 2022 and 2025.” “The increase is associated with ongoing geopolitical unrest, as well as heightened public awareness and reporting of hate-motivated incidents,” CPS said. The recent event comes as religious communities across Canada continue to face hate-motivated incidents. According to Statistics Canada, there were 788 reported hate crimes targeting Jewish people in 2025, accounting for 71 per cent of all religion-motivated hate crimes. There were 204 reported hate crimes targeting Muslims and 36 targeting Catholics. Mayor calls for action on anti-Semitism Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas is also calling for stronger action to address anti-Semitism and hate in the city. In a video posted to X, Farkas says Calgary needs to move beyond statements condemning hate and put more resources behind preventing it. He called for dedicated funding to combat anti-Semitism, including more police resources to investigate hate crimes and respond to threats. He also wants to see the province and federal government take stronger action, including mandatory Holocaust education in Alberta schools and stronger protections for communities facing hate. “Calgary will put money behind our words; we will strengthen policing, protect Jewish institutions, invest in prevention, push Alberta on education, push Canada’s major cities to act and demand action from Ottawa,” said Farkas. “In Calgary, this evil will not be explained away. It will not be normalized. It will not be ignored.”
