SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A young Londoner leaves a Hulk Action Figure for the nine year old boy who remains in hospital with serious injuries, at the scene where a man driving a pickup truck struck and killed four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario, Canada on June 7, 2021. (Photo: Nicole Osborne/AFP via Getty Images)
'Who Can Fathom This Kind of Hate?': Grief and Calls for Action After Muslim Family Murdered in Ontario
"This loss of a family, the loss of a child in our community because of Islamophobia—this is a sorrow that will run deep for a long time," said the National Council of Canadian Muslims.
Jun 08, 2021
Matched with expressions of grief and anguish, progressives in both Canada and the U.S. are calling on the broader public to stand against Islamophobia after the murder of four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario on Sunday.
In the worst attack on Canadian Muslims since a 2017 shooting at a mosque in Quebec City, police say evidence shows a driver intentionally ran into Salman and Madiha Afzal, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and nine-year-old son Fayez, and a 74-year-old grandmother whose name was not made public. Fayez was the only survivor of the attack and was recovering from his injuries in a hospital Tuesday morning.
London police said the attack on the family as they were waiting to cross a street was "a planned, premeditated act, motivated by hate."
"We believe the victims were targeted because of their Islamic faith," detective superintendent Paul Waught told reporters.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday he planned to travel to London Tuesday to attend an evening vigil.
"To the Muslim community in London and to Muslims across the country, know that we stand with you. Islamophobia has no place in any of our communities. This hate is insidious and despicable--and it must stop," said Trudeau.
Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), called on Canadians to "stand with our Muslim family, friends, and neighbors against such vile hate."
The murder of the Afzal family comes amid reports that hate crimes against Muslims are on the rise in Canada. In 2019, 181 crimes motivated by anti-Muslim hate were reported to Canadian police, according to Statistics Canada--up from 166 the previous year.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims said the murders should be treated as a "terrorist attack on Canadian soil."
"We call on the government to prosecute the attacker to the fullest extent of the law, including considering terrorist charges," CEO Mustafa Farooq, said Monday. "This loss of a family, the loss of a child in our community because of Islamophobia--this is a sorrow that will run deep for a long time. But let that sorrow be the ground where we stand for justice, and stand for change.
A 20-year-old suspect was arrested in a mall parking lot after the attack and was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. The suspect was wearing a body armor vest, according to Al Jazeera.
The attack drew international condemnation, including from U.S. lawmakers like Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, from which the Afzal family emigrated 14 years ago, also expressed grief and outrage.
"Saddened to learn of the killing of a Muslim Pakistani-origin Canadian family in London, Ontario," Khan said. "This condemnable act of terrorism reveals the growing Islamophobia in Western countries. Islamophobia needs to be countered holistically by the international community."
Others expressed similar sadness and horror.
"Why do people have to die for who they are?" asked Linda Sarsour, co-founder of the Women's March and the Muslim advocacy group M-Power Change. "Horrific. Sending prayers to our Ontario Muslim family. We stand with you."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Matched with expressions of grief and anguish, progressives in both Canada and the U.S. are calling on the broader public to stand against Islamophobia after the murder of four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario on Sunday.
In the worst attack on Canadian Muslims since a 2017 shooting at a mosque in Quebec City, police say evidence shows a driver intentionally ran into Salman and Madiha Afzal, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and nine-year-old son Fayez, and a 74-year-old grandmother whose name was not made public. Fayez was the only survivor of the attack and was recovering from his injuries in a hospital Tuesday morning.
London police said the attack on the family as they were waiting to cross a street was "a planned, premeditated act, motivated by hate."
"We believe the victims were targeted because of their Islamic faith," detective superintendent Paul Waught told reporters.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday he planned to travel to London Tuesday to attend an evening vigil.
"To the Muslim community in London and to Muslims across the country, know that we stand with you. Islamophobia has no place in any of our communities. This hate is insidious and despicable--and it must stop," said Trudeau.
Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), called on Canadians to "stand with our Muslim family, friends, and neighbors against such vile hate."
The murder of the Afzal family comes amid reports that hate crimes against Muslims are on the rise in Canada. In 2019, 181 crimes motivated by anti-Muslim hate were reported to Canadian police, according to Statistics Canada--up from 166 the previous year.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims said the murders should be treated as a "terrorist attack on Canadian soil."
"We call on the government to prosecute the attacker to the fullest extent of the law, including considering terrorist charges," CEO Mustafa Farooq, said Monday. "This loss of a family, the loss of a child in our community because of Islamophobia--this is a sorrow that will run deep for a long time. But let that sorrow be the ground where we stand for justice, and stand for change.
A 20-year-old suspect was arrested in a mall parking lot after the attack and was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. The suspect was wearing a body armor vest, according to Al Jazeera.
The attack drew international condemnation, including from U.S. lawmakers like Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, from which the Afzal family emigrated 14 years ago, also expressed grief and outrage.
"Saddened to learn of the killing of a Muslim Pakistani-origin Canadian family in London, Ontario," Khan said. "This condemnable act of terrorism reveals the growing Islamophobia in Western countries. Islamophobia needs to be countered holistically by the international community."
Others expressed similar sadness and horror.
"Why do people have to die for who they are?" asked Linda Sarsour, co-founder of the Women's March and the Muslim advocacy group M-Power Change. "Horrific. Sending prayers to our Ontario Muslim family. We stand with you."
Matched with expressions of grief and anguish, progressives in both Canada and the U.S. are calling on the broader public to stand against Islamophobia after the murder of four members of a Muslim family in London, Ontario on Sunday.
In the worst attack on Canadian Muslims since a 2017 shooting at a mosque in Quebec City, police say evidence shows a driver intentionally ran into Salman and Madiha Afzal, their 15-year-old daughter Yumna and nine-year-old son Fayez, and a 74-year-old grandmother whose name was not made public. Fayez was the only survivor of the attack and was recovering from his injuries in a hospital Tuesday morning.
London police said the attack on the family as they were waiting to cross a street was "a planned, premeditated act, motivated by hate."
"We believe the victims were targeted because of their Islamic faith," detective superintendent Paul Waught told reporters.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Tuesday he planned to travel to London Tuesday to attend an evening vigil.
"To the Muslim community in London and to Muslims across the country, know that we stand with you. Islamophobia has no place in any of our communities. This hate is insidious and despicable--and it must stop," said Trudeau.
Jagmeet Singh, leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP), called on Canadians to "stand with our Muslim family, friends, and neighbors against such vile hate."
The murder of the Afzal family comes amid reports that hate crimes against Muslims are on the rise in Canada. In 2019, 181 crimes motivated by anti-Muslim hate were reported to Canadian police, according to Statistics Canada--up from 166 the previous year.
The National Council of Canadian Muslims said the murders should be treated as a "terrorist attack on Canadian soil."
"We call on the government to prosecute the attacker to the fullest extent of the law, including considering terrorist charges," CEO Mustafa Farooq, said Monday. "This loss of a family, the loss of a child in our community because of Islamophobia--this is a sorrow that will run deep for a long time. But let that sorrow be the ground where we stand for justice, and stand for change.
A 20-year-old suspect was arrested in a mall parking lot after the attack and was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted murder. The suspect was wearing a body armor vest, according to Al Jazeera.
The attack drew international condemnation, including from U.S. lawmakers like Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.).
Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, from which the Afzal family emigrated 14 years ago, also expressed grief and outrage.
"Saddened to learn of the killing of a Muslim Pakistani-origin Canadian family in London, Ontario," Khan said. "This condemnable act of terrorism reveals the growing Islamophobia in Western countries. Islamophobia needs to be countered holistically by the international community."
Others expressed similar sadness and horror.
"Why do people have to die for who they are?" asked Linda Sarsour, co-founder of the Women's March and the Muslim advocacy group M-Power Change. "Horrific. Sending prayers to our Ontario Muslim family. We stand with you."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.