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London, Ont. Muslim community reacts to national Islamophobia summit

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London, Ont. -

There is mixed reactions among London's Muslim leaders to the sentiment and efficacy of the federal government's National Action Summit on Islamophobia.

The summit was aimed at giving representatives from Canada's Muslim community the opportunity to speak to political leaders about the growing concerns around Islamophobia.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s main message from Thursday's virtual summit was that, "There is no place in Canada for Islamophobia."

He added, “I’m here to listen to you on what our next steps should be to continue building a country where everyone is welcome, safe and respected.”

Imam Aarij Anwer of the London Muslim Mosque attended the summit and says it's a step in the right direction.

“Addressing the problem and calling it out as it is. And these are important first steps, we can’t overlook the significance of them.”

London Muslim Mosque Member Nawaz Tahir echoes that sentiment.

“I was happy to hear some comments by some cabinet ministers about some of the immediate steps they’re going to take, for example investigating the (Canada Revenue Agency) and the complaints about Muslim charities being targeted.”

However, both did not support the government's lack of response to concerns about Quebec's Bill 21 banning government workers from wearing religious symbols.

“What we’ve heard from our ministers, our leaders, is Muslim women are the most vulnerable because they’re visibly Muslim," Anwer says. "How can we say they’re vulnerable, they need to be protected while also having a law like Bill C 21 on the books?”

And although the summit was a step in the right direction, both also agree the work doesn't stop here.

“The strength of the summit will be based on the actions of the government in the next 60 days and that will be the true measure of whether or not the summit was a success,” Tahir says.

He hopes the government will consider the concerns raised during Thursday's summit and act quickly.

"I think a lot of the recommendations don’t even need parliament to be in session. Government can act on them tomorrow or Monday or next week.”

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