Academics & Education

Legault government up in arms after EMSB awarded federal funds to fight pair of Quebec laws Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says funding is allocated by program independent of federal government

(CBC) The Quebec government says Ottawa has some explaining to do after it was revealed that the English Montreal School Board is funding two separate legal challenges of provincial laws with federal tax dollars. “We need an explanation from the federal government,” […]

Government & Politics

U.S. border officers were told to target Iranian-born travellers, officer alleges in email U.S. Border Protection has denied detaining Iranian-born travellers and blamed long waits on the holidays

(CBC) U.S. border officers working at multiple Canada-U.S. border crossings were instructed to target and interrogate Iranian-born travellers in early January, said a U.S. border officer in an email obtained by CBC News. The allegation follows reports that up to 200 people of Iranian […]

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Civil rights groups challenging Quebec’s religious symbols ban file appeal to Canada’s top court Request for appeal was filed in a 27-page brief Friday

(CBC) Civil rights groups challenging Quebec’s controversial ban on religious symbols have filed an appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada. Last month, Quebec’s Court of Appeal rejected a request to suspend portions of the law, known as Bill 21, pending a ruling on its constitutionality. […]

Government & Politics

Border stops for people of Iranian descent spark outrage The reaction to the detentions at a Canadian crossing and a New York airport came after the U.S. killing of an Iranian military commander.

(Politico) Reports of Iranians and Iranian-Americans being detained for questioning upon entering the U.S. kicked off a furor on Sunday from Washington state to Washington, D.C., marking a new domestic blowback to the Trump administration’s targeted killing of a key Iranian leader. […]

Children & Teens

Mounties worried about anti-immigrant backlash after terrorism arrests: documents Police detained, then released, a man of Syrian descent during Project Salento last January

(CBC) The RCMP was worried about anti-immigrant backlash in the wake of an alleged Kingston terrorist plot and raised concerns about a rise in protests due to “the government’s position on immigration,” new internal documents show. Last January, the national police force charged a […]

Academics & Education

‘Foolish’: Muslim convention criticised for hosting anti-Palestinian politician Attendees criticise decision to host Ontario Premier Doug Ford whose political party has been accused of Islamophobia

(Middle East Eye) Billed as one of the biggest Muslim events in North America, the Reviving the Islamic Spirit (RIS) conference has attracted some high-profile names in recent years, including Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as well as Pakistan’s Imran Khan. So […]

Government & Politics

‘False and unfounded’: Liberal MP denies claims that he’s worked with Iran Journalist claims he was told by Iranian defector that Majid Jowhari has had contact with Iranian intelligence

(CBC) A Liberal MP is denying allegations, broadcast on an Iranian-language television network, that he has worked with and accepted money from Iran’s government. “These accusations are absolutely false and unfounded,” Majid Jowhari told CBC News in a written statement. “I strongly […]

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Civil rights groups want to challenge Quebec religious symbols ban in Supreme Court Appeals Court last week rejected request for injunction on sections of Bill 21

(CBC) Civil rights groups challenging Quebec’s controversial ban on religious symbols want to take their case to Canada’s top court. Quebec’s Court of Appeal last week rejected a request to suspend portions of the law, known as Bill 21, pending a ruling on its constitutionality. […]

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‘We will keep on fighting’: Muslim women devastated by Appeal Court decision to uphold Bill 21 Amal Sassi, who came to Quebec to pursue a teaching career, had hoped for a ruling allowing her to continue

(CBC) Amal Sassi was counting on Quebec’s highest court to suspend the province’s controversial secularism law, so she kept her head buried in her books Thursday and focused on studying for her final exams. When she stepped out and heard the news that […]

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Quebec’s top court won’t suspend province’s religious symbols ban, but judges say rights being violated Province’s controversial Bill 21 passes major legal test; opponents vow to continue fight

(CBC) Quebec’s Court of Appeal has refused to suspend the province’s controversial ban on religious symbols, even while acknowledging it causes “irreparable harm” to those affected. The province’s top court was ruling on a request to stay sections of the Laicity Act, or Bill 21, […]

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François Legault’s high-stakes game with the courts and Quebec’s secularism law Premier faces a test as supporters of the controversial Bill 21 question Quebec's chief justice

(CBC) The stakes around Quebec’s secularism law have always been high, but somehow they’ve managed to become even higher in recent days. The law (Bill 21) has already altered the career choices of dozens, maybe hundreds, of aspiring public school teachers, prosecutors and police officers by […]

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Dawson College professor accuses Quebec’s top judge of bias against Bill 21 Frédéric Bastien has filed formal complaint against Nicole Duval Hesler, chief justice of the Court of Appeal

(CBC) A Quebec historian has launched a formal complaint against the chief justice of the province’s Court of Appeal over comments she made about the province’s religious symbols law. Frédéric Bastien, who teaches history at Dawson College, said taken together, Justice Nicole Duval […]

Children & Teens

Nigerian family facing deportation fear for their lives if sent back to Africa The Bakare family fled Nigeria out of fear their daughter would be subjected to female genital mutilation

(CBC) Members of a Nigerian family living in Windsor say they fear for their lives as a result of media attention they’ve received after a deportation order previously issued by the Canadian government. Rasheedat Bakare, her husband Afeez, son Faaiq and daughter […]

Academics & Education

Amid political gamesmanship, some Quebec Muslim women enticed by offer to move to Manitoba 'Why wouldn't I go somewhere where I feel welcome?' asks one law student who wears a hijab

(CBC) As a political spat plays out between Manitoba and Quebec over Bill 21, some Muslim women affected by the province’s ban on religious symbols say they are tempted by the offer to move to the Prairie province. Seeba Chaachouh, a third-year law […]

Academics & Education

Pamphlets inform Muslim women of their rights in wake of Quebec’s secularism law Documents include information on how to face and report harassment and how to deal with discrimination

(CBC) An advocacy group is launching a campaign to inform Muslim women of their rights as it tries to deal with increasing reports of harassment and discrimination since Quebec’s secularism law was introduced. Justice Femme, the group behind the campaign, will begin distributing […]

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Quebec women’s federation gets hate messages after support for hijab hashtag Hashtag came after female politician barred from National Assembly for wearing a hoodie

(CBC) Quebec’s largest women’s organization said it was the target of hateful comments on social media after announcing support for the hashtag MonVoileMonChoix, or My Hijab, My Choice. The Fédération des femmes du Québec (FFQ) said it was inundated with hateful, Islamophobic messages. Some […]

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Ontario MPPs pass Coteau’s motion affirming religious freedoms in response to Quebec’s Bill 21 Michael Coteau placed motion before Legislature on Thursday afternoon

(CBC) The Ontario Legislature on Thursday passed a motion from Michael Coteau, Liberal MPP for Don Valley East, affirming the province’s support of religious diversity in response to Quebec’s Bill 21. Coteau placed the motion before the province’s elected representatives on Thursday afternoon, asking […]