Canada's new anti-Islamophobia representative apologizes for comments about Quebecers
Canada's new special representative on combating Islamophobia has apologized for words that hurt Quebecers after leaders in that province called for her resignation.
Amira Elghawaby apologized in English before a meeting on Wednesday with Bloc Québécois Leader Yves-François Blanchet.
"As a member of Canada's Muslim community, we know what it's like to be stereotyped. We know what it's like for people to have biases, and I understand the words and the way that I have said them have hurt people in Quebec," Elghawaby said.
"I have been listening very carefully. I have heard you, and I know what you are feeling. And I am sorry."
Following the meeting, Elghawaby said that their conversation was constructive, but they "agree to disagree" when it comes to Quebec's Bill 21.
The law has been heavily criticized — including by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — for discriminating against members of religious minorities by banning them from wearing religious symbols at their public-service workplaces.
"Our (Muslim) communities have expressed the ways that it is impacting them, and that is going to remain my message: this is a discriminatory bill," Elghawaby told reporters.
"That being said, the way that we're going to move forward on these types of different conversations is by being able to listen, and ensuring the ways we talk about these issues aren't hurtful on either side."
She said that moving forward, the dialogue needs to be free from "conflict journalism" and "conflict politics," because those who are caught in the middle are everyday people.
Multiple politicians in Quebec have called for Elghawaby's appointment to be rescinded because of comments she made in a 2019 opinion piece.
The column, co-written with former Canadian Jewish Congress CEO Bernie Farber, cited polling data to say that "a majority of Quebecers" who supported Bill 21 also held anti-Muslim views.
Farber and Elghawaby, a journalist and human-rights activist, were board members with the Canadian Anti-Hate Network at the time.
Trudeau said after the apology on Wednesday that it demonstrated the extent to which she is a sensitive person who is open to others' concerns and wants to "build bridges" in a difficult file.
Quebec Secularism Minister Jean-François Roberge said he appreciates Elghawaby's apology but it does not change his government's view.
"I still don't believe she has the credibility, the legitimacy to occupy the role the prime minister has given her," he told reporters in French. "I think that now, the second thing for her to do is to submit her resignation."
Earlier Wednesday, Trudeau said Quebec has a complicated history with religion, citing the oppression of the Catholic Church in the province before the Quiet Revolution largely removed the church from government services including health care and education.
He said it is important to him that all Canadians understand that before the Quiet Revolution, Quebecers "suffered the yoke and the attacks on individual rights and freedoms of an oppressive church."
"And that comes with it a certain perspective around what secularism is, and the role of religion in society that informs what modern Quebec is," he said. "Quebecers are not racists."
There are also Canadians, including in the Muslim community, for whom religion is extremely important in both a public and a private way, he said.
"What we need now is people who can understand and bridge those two realities," said Trudeau.
Elghawaby, he said, is the right person to try and bridge that divide.
"What started with a level of concern about some unfortunate statements is starting to look like a pile on, and we're very aware of where that's coming from," Crown-Indigenous Relations Minister Marc Miller, who represents a Quebec riding, said Wednesday prior to Elghawaby's apology.
"We have to be careful as a nation, as people instrumentalize the fear of the other, particularly those who have not been represented in the public space, like Muslims."
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said he wants the focus to turn towards combating Islamophobia and the violence that it leads to.
"Islamophobia is not a problem of any one place. It's a problem for the entire country," Singh said Wednesday. "We need to take this issue very seriously, and protect the members of our Muslim communities."
On Sunday, Canada marked the sixth anniversary of the Quebec City mosque shooting, when six men were killed not long after their evening prayers.
In 2021, a man drove his pickup truck into a Muslim family in London, Ont., killing a family of four and injuring one other.
"We have had other attacks in other parts of the country. We know Islamophobia kills. This is the issue," Elghawaby said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2023.
With files from Mia Rabson.
IN DEPTH
Budget 2024 prioritizes housing while taxing highest earners, deficit projected at $39.8B
In an effort to level the playing field for young people, in the 2024 federal budget, the government is targeting Canada's highest earners with new taxes in order to help offset billions in new spending to enhance the country's housing supply and social supports.
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
'Democracy requires constant vigilance' Trudeau testifies at inquiry into foreign election interference in Canada
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified Wednesday before the national public inquiry into foreign interference in Canada's electoral processes, following a day of testimony from top cabinet ministers about allegations of meddling in the 2019 and 2021 federal elections. Recap all the prime minister had to say.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
Supports for passengers, farmers, artists: 7 bills from MPs and Senators to watch in 2024
When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on, from a 'gutted' proposal to offer a carbon tax break to farmers, to an initiative aimed at improving Canada's DNA data bank.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. tenants evicted for landlord's use after refusing large rent increase to take over neighbouring suite
Ashley Dickey and her mother rented part of the same Coquitlam duplex in three different decades under three different landlords.
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
Expert warns of food consumption habits amid rising prices
A new survey by Dalhousie University's Agri-Food Analytics Lab asked Canadians about their food consumption habits amid rising prices.
Here's why provinces aren't following Saskatchewan's lead on the carbon tax home heating fight
After Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the federal government would still send Canada Carbon Rebate cheques to Saskatchewan residents, despite Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe's decision to stop collecting the carbon tax on natural gas or home heating, questions were raised about whether other provinces would follow suit. CTV News reached out across the country and here's what we found out.
Montreal actress calls Weinstein ruling 'discouraging' but not surprising
A Montreal actress, who has previously detailed incidents she had with disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, says a New York Court of Appeals decision overturning his 2020 rape conviction is 'discouraging' but not surprising.
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels and Drake Maye make it four NFL drafts with quarterbacks going 1-3
Caleb Williams is heading to the Windy City, aiming to become the franchise quarterback Chicago has sought for decades.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Local Spotlight
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fergus, Ont. man feels nickel-and-dimed for $0.05 property tax bill
A property tax bill is perplexing a small townhouse community in Fergus, Ont.
Twins from Toronto were Canada's top two female finishers at this year's Boston Marathon
When identical twin sisters Kim and Michelle Krezonoski were invited to compete against some of the world’s most elite female runners at last week’s Boston Marathon, they were in disbelief.
Mystery surrounds giant custom Canucks jerseys worn by Lions Gate Bridge statues
The giant stone statues guarding the Lions Gate Bridge have been dressed in custom Vancouver Canucks jerseys as the NHL playoffs get underway.
'I'm committed': Oilers fan won't cut hair until Stanley Cup comes to Edmonton
A local Oilers fan is hoping to see his team cut through the postseason, so he can cut his hair.
'It's not my father's body!' Wrong man sent home after death on family vacation in Cuba
A family from Laval, Que. is looking for answers... and their father's body. He died on vacation in Cuba and authorities sent someone else's body back to Canada.
'Once is too many times': Education assistants facing rising violence in classrooms
A former educational assistant is calling attention to the rising violence in Alberta's classrooms.
What is capital gains tax? How is it going to affect the economy and the younger generations?
The federal government says its plan to increase taxes on capital gains is aimed at wealthy Canadians to achieve “tax fairness.”
UBC football star turning heads in lead up to NFL draft
At 6'8" and 350 pounds, there is nothing typical about UBC offensive lineman Giovanni Manu, who was born in Tonga and went to high school in Pitt Meadows.