Australia: Labor should let hope prevail on refugees, shadow minister Andrew Giles says

2019/06/27 Leave a comment

Post-election positioning. Even the government seems to have turned down its pre-election rhetoric as seen in its apparent abandoning some of its citizenship proposals (Whatever happened to the ‘Australian values’ citizenship bill?):

Public sentiment on asylum seekers has shifted, and Labor must use the looming parliamentary term to “give Australia’s hopeful side a fair chance to prevail over the politics of fear, and division” according to the shadow minister for multicultural affairs, Andrew Giles.

Giles will use a speech to Australian Fabians on Wednesday to argue the recent community debate around the medical evacuations bill, and the tone of the federal election, suggests Australians are over the toxic politics of border protection, and are fatigued by the “false binaries and unnecessary aggression” from the home affairs minister, Peter Dutton.

The Victorian leftwinger will say it was notable that border protection, and the “demonisation of asylum seekers” did not feature front and centre in the 2019 federal election, which is unusual compared with previous federal contests. “I’m not sure if we can quite characterise this as something to celebrate, but it is a significant development – something to build upon.”

Giles says the “noise” of the hyper-partisan conflict over border protection policy that has raged in Australia since the Tampa standoff “has crowded out both a reasoned and reasonable exchange of ideas, and the voices of those whose lives are directly affected by the policy choices we make”.

Source: Labor should let hope prevail on refugees, shadow minister Andrew Giles says

Filed under Citizenship, Refugees Tagged with ,

Editorial: Estonia needs to tackle anti-Semitism before it’s too late

2019/06/27 Leave a comment

Generally, not much coverage of Estonia:

For the small Estonian Jewish community, times have been peaceful – but recent anti-Semitic acts are a reason for concern.

Over the weekend of 22-23 June, several headstones at the 110-year old Rahumäe Jewish cemetery in the Estonian capital, Tallinn, were knocked over. On 23 June, swastikas were spray-painted on large stones by the Lille bus stop in Tallinn’s Kristiine district.

“On 23 June, when all of Estonia celebrated the 100th anniversary of the victory of Estonian troops over the Baltic Landeswehr (Baltic German troops during the Estonian War of Independence – editor) near Võnnu, there were two extremely outrageous incidents in Tallinn,” the Jewish Community of Estonia wrote on its Facebook page on 24 June.

“This monstrous act of vandalism at a place where our ancestors rest in peace, where every human being thinks about spirituality, their connection to past generations and human values, is offensive, frightening and unacceptable in our society,” the Estonian Jewish Community and the Estonian Jewish Congregation said in a statement.

The community added that the act of vandalism was the first at the Jewish cemetery – it was not defiled even during the Nazi occupation of Estonia (from 1941-1944 – editor).

According to Alla Jakobson, the chairwoman of the Estonian Jewish Community, it is hard to believe that these malicious actions were organised specifically during the holidays in Estonia (when the country celebrates Victory Day, Midsummer Eve and Midsummer Day – or St John’s Day). “It is hoped that it was just a very unfortunate coincidence,” she said in a statement.

“We honour the memory of the deceased and would like society to show understanding and mutual respect for the memory of the people who lost their ancestors in that country. I am convinced the [police] investigation will identify those whose behaviour caused sorrow and pain,” Jakobson added.

The Jewish Community of Estonia added that “such acts of vandalism and the spray-painted swastikas in public places are a direct reference to the tragic [historical] events. We hope [these events] will never happen again. Not in Estonia, or in any other country.”

Several incidents in a row causing a concern

The latest anti-Semitic acts follow the incident in March, when a 27-year-old Estonian man aggressively shouted at the country’s Chief Rabbi, Shmuel Kot, on the street: “What are you staring at, Jew? You’re going into the oven.” The man also shouted “Sieg Heil” and “Heil Hitler” at Kot while the rabbi was walking to Tallinn’s synagogue with two of his children, aged seven and 12. The police later identified the abuser, arrested him – and he was sentenced to eight days in prison.

According to Kot, this kind of an incident was the first time two of his children had witnessed any such harassment.

In August 2018, unidentified individuals vandalised the Holocaust memorials at Kalevi-Liiva in Estonia’s Harju County. Thousands of Jews perished there during the Nazi occupation of Estonia, from 1941-1944. The memorials were spray-painted with swastikas, anti-Semitic and Nazi messages.

6, when Estonian World spoke to Rabbi Kot, he told us Estonia was a very peaceful, calm and good country for Jews. Therefore, the latest developments cause a serious concern – and in the light of far-right gains in the last parliamentary election in March, beg the question whether an anti-Semitic sentiment is on the rise in Estonia.

A troubled history, but mostly tolerant country for Jews

Like many European countries, Estonia may have had a fair bit of troubled history with anti-Semitism, but for the most part of its existence, it has been regarded as a tolerant country for Jews.

From the very first days of its existence as a state in 1918, Estonia showed tolerance towards all the peoples inhabiting her territories. In 1925, the Act of Cultural Autonomy for Ethnic Minorities was enacted in Estonia, giving minority groups consisting of at least 3,000 individuals the right of self-determination in cultural matters. Thus, in 1926, the Jewish cultural autonomy was declared – first of its kind in the world. For its tolerant policy towards Jews, even a page was dedicated to the Republic of Estonia in the Golden Book of the Jewish National Fund in 1927.

Sadly, the history took a wrong turn. With the Soviet occupation of Estonia in 1940, Jewish cultural autonomy, in addition to the activities of Jewish organisations, was terminated. All Jewish schools were closed and 414 Estonian Jews (10 per cent of the Jewish community) were deported to Siberia in the course of the mass deportations of June 1941.

Worse was to come. During the German occupation, the Nazis murdered approximately 1,000 Jews who had failed to flee Estonia (most had escaped to the Soviet Union before the Nazi occupation). In addition, about 10,000 Jews were transported to Nazi concentration camps in Estonia from other parts of Europe. Only a handful of them survived.

During the second Soviet occupation (1944–1991), many Jews migrated to Estonia again to escape the anti-Semitism prevalent in many parts of the Soviet Union. After the restoration of Estonia’s independence in 1991, the local Jewish cultural life was reinvigorated again and the community of about 2,500 people has generally thrived since. In 2007, a new synagogue was opened in Tallinn – the first synagogue to open in Estonia since the Second World War.

Let’s keep Estonia an educated and tolerant country

This publication calls the Estonian society and institutions to take the anti-Semitic incidents seriously – it’s important to tackle the hatred and prejudice and cut it at its roots. More education is needed about the Holocaust – there is sadly still too much ignorance and denial about the genocide that also took place in Estonia, among many European countries.

The local media – and especially the country’s public broadcasting, ERR – could also highlight the positive contribution of thousands of Estonian Jews throughout the history, which has benefitted not just Estonia, but also the world. From Louis Kahn to Eri Klas, from Yuri Lotman to Eino Baskin, many Estonian Jews have made Estonia and the world a better place.

Until recently, Estonia stood out positively as a place where Jews could live in peace and thrive – let’s keep it that way.

Source: Editorial: Estonia needs to tackle anti-Semitism before it’s too late

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism Tagged with

Egypt considers pros, cons of foreign citizenship changes

2019/06/27 Leave a comment

Another citizenship-by-investment approach with explicit political involvement :

The topic of granting foreigners Egyptian citizenship has long been controversial, and proposed amendments to the Egyptian Nationality Law are no exception.

The recent proposals have stirred up many questions since the Egyptian government submitted them to parliament in April. They received initial approval June 9 of the parliamentary Defense and National Security Committee, which will discuss them further and then submit them to parliament’s general assembly for final voting.

Article 2 of the amendment bill would entitle the prime minister to grant nationality to foreigners who buy real estate owned by the Egyptian state or other public entities; it also establishes an investment project in Egypt in accordance with the investment law or deposits a sum of money in foreign currency in Egyptian banks.

Article 3 stipulates forming a Council of Ministers unit to examine naturalization applications. This unit will comprise security authorities and representatives of the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Interior, Investment and International Cooperation. The same article states foreigners would submit naturalization applications after paying $10,000. The unit would examine applications within three months while considering national security. If the prime minister grants initial approval, an applicant would be granted residence in Egypt for six months to complete the required procedures.

Opinions on the amendments vary among parliament members, political and economic observers, and citizens.

The Egyptian Businessmen’s Association (EBA) praised the amendments to the Egyptian Nationality Law, also known as Law No. 26 of 1975.

EBA vice chairman Fathallah Fawzi said in a June 17 press statement the proposed amendments to that law and a bundle of others — most notably the unified Investment Law — will help grow the real estate sector in Egypt and create a more attractive business climate for foreign investors.

But speculation abounds. Some critics see the proposed amendments as a move to pave the way for the US plan for peace between Israelis and Palestinians, dubbed by US President Donald Trump the “deal of the century.” That deal is being discussed this week at an economic summit in Bahrain.

Many Egyptians were concerned the US plan will include an offer to establish a place for Palestinians in parts of the Sinai. But US officials denied this, and Yahya al-Kadwani, a member of Egypt’s parliamentary Defense and National Security Committee, told Al-Monitor that’s not likely to happen.

He noted that in 1959, Egypt ratified an Arab League recommendation exhorting Arab countries not to grant nationality to Palestinians so as not to weaken the Palestinian movement to establish a homeland.

Talaat Khalil, a member of the parliamentary Planning and Budget Committee, said some Egyptians, himself included, also fear amendments to the Egyptian Nationality Law would be used as leverage to get Palestinians to cooperate with the US peace plan by offering them Egyptian citizenship.

He said amendments aren’t necessarily even needed, as not having Egyptian nationality is unlikely to prevent foreign investors from establishing projects in Egypt. In a June 11 statement to BBC, Khalil said the current unified Investment Law already gives foreign investors many advantages and opportunities equal to those of Egyptian investors, in addition to almost open-ended residency permits.

Other critics claim the amendments aim to pressure refugees, especially Syrians, to invest more in exchange for citizenship. Reports by the Istanbul-based Arabic Post and Qatari Al-Jazeera news websites, which oppose the Egyptian regime, potentially linked the nationality law amendments to a campaign launched by Samir Sabri, an Egyptian lawyer close to the regime.

On June 9, Sabri filed a complaint asking the government to examine the funds of Syrian refugees to ensure they’re not used for money laundering or terrorist financing. The news reports said Sabri’s complaint might aim to pressure Syrians in Egypt to invest more in real estate or make greater bank and investment savings to obtain Egyptian citizenship.

Yet, Bahaa al-Ghamri, a political science professor at Suez Canal University, questioned the Arabic Post and Al-Jazeera articles. He told Al-Monitor the Egyptian state has always welcomed Syrian and other Arab refugees fleeing civil wars and security unrest in their country.

“The amendments to the Nationality Law will favor affluent Arab and Syrian refugees. Refugees in Egypt are prohibited from engaging in many business activities such as establishing pharmacies, newspapers and some other types of companies. Once the amendments are effective, many Syrians who wish to invest in these fields will be able to do so and get Egyptian citizenship in return,” Ghamri said.

Osama Rushdy, a lawyer specializing in the incorporation of companies and representing many foreign investors, denounced attempts to link the amendments to the “deal of the century” or the Syrian crisis. He argued that the amendments aim to promote the Egyptian investment climate and make investing easier.

“Many refugees in Egypt are unable to invest because of their status as refugees, since they don’t have permanent residency. Giving them Egyptian citizenship is the best way to secure permanent residency,” Rushdy told Al-Monitor.

“The old and current investment laws don’t allow foreign investors to incorporate specific types of companies except in cases of Egyptian partnerships such as those with limited shares, with 49% of the shares held by Egyptians. This [high] percentage of shares could force the foreign investor to accept interventions by one or more unwanted Egyptian partners,” he said.

Rushdy added, “It’s better for foreign investors to obtain Egyptian citizenship to facilitate investment and business procedures.”

Source: Egypt considers pros, cons of foreign citizenship changes

Filed under Citizenship, citizenship-by-investment Tagged with

Canada adopts universal definition of anti-Semitism

2019/06/27 Leave a comment

Another pre-election announcement. The sensitive part of the non-legally binding working definition concerns criticism of Israel.

Comparable issues arise in any definition of Islamophobia or anti-Muslim hate between the relatively easy definitions of discriminatory behaviour or hate against Muslims and criticism of Islam itself:

Canada’s government announced on Tuesday that it will formally adopt the widely accepted definition of anti-Semitism by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance as part of the country’s anti-racism initiative.

“To help address resurgent anti-Semitism in Canada, we’re adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of anti-Semitism as part of our strategy,” said Pablo Rodriguez, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Multiculturalism.

Canada joined the IHRA is 2009 and is one of 32 member states.

The IHRA definition says: “Anti-Semitism is a certain perception of Jews, which may be expressed as hatred toward Jews. Rhetorical and physical manifestations of anti-Semitism are directed toward Jewish or non-Jewish individuals and/or their property, toward Jewish community institutions and religious facilities.”

Jewish groups applauded Rodriguez’s announcement.

“Peddlers of anti-Semitism must be held accountable, but this can only happen if authorities can clearly and consistently identify acts of Jew-hatred,” said Joel Reitman, co-chair of the board of directors at the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs.

“This is why CIJA has been calling on all three levels of government to use the (IHRA) working definition of anti-Semitism,” he continued. “The IHRA definition, which has been adopted by dozens of democratic countries, is a vital tool in countering the global rise in anti-Semitism.”

“Canada adopting IHRA’s definition of antisemitism is an important symbolic and declaratory move,” said NGO Monitor founder and president Gerald Steinberg. “We hope that the next steps will pertain to its implementation within Canadian policy, including regarding Canadian international aid and support of NGOs.”

B’nai Brith Canada labeled the IHRA standard “the most universally accepted and expertly driven definition of anti-Semitism available today,” and one that “enjoys unprecedented consensus.”

Some 392,000 Jews reside in Canada, or 1 percent of the overall population.

Overall, 2,041 anti-Semitic incidents in Canada were reported in 2018—a 16.5 percent increase from the previous year, according to B’nai Brith Canada.

Incidents of vandalism decreased from 327 to 221, as violent anti-Semitic attacks also dropped, from 16 in 2017 to 11 in 2018.

Source: Canada adopts universal definition of anti-Semitism

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism, Religion Tagged with , ,

New office will tackle racism in federal institutions as part of $45M national plan

2019/06/27 Leave a comment

Too busy at the International Metropolis this week to take a closer look to see whether or not it has the potential to have more impact than the post Durban conference Canadian Action Plan Against Racism (CAPAR) whose only meaningful result was the collection of hate crimes statistics:

The federal government unveiled its first-ever anti-racism strategy in Toronto today, which will see the creation of an office that will oversee efforts to tackle systemic racism and discrimination in federal institutions.

Speaking at a community centre in the city, Heritage and Multiculturalism Minister Pablo Rodriguez unveiled the $45-million, three-year strategy, called “Building a Foundation for Change.”

The strategy’s centrepiece is a $4.6 million anti-racism secretariat that will lead federal efforts in tackling the issue, reporting annually on the federal government’s process — or lack thereof — in addressing racism and discrimination.

The new office will ultimately lead efforts to get federal institutions to identify gaps and co-ordinate initiatives meant to address systemic discrimination, pushing the bureaucracy to better consider the impacts of policies, services and programs on racialized and Indigenous communities.

As well, $5 million will go to community-led digital and civic literacy programming to address online disinformation and hate speech in response to “heightened concerns around online hate.”

The strategy also provides $30 million worth of grant funding for community-based projects, with a focus on improving employment outcomes, public participation, and supporting at-risk youth. The application process will start on Sept. 3.

Another $3.3 million will also go toward a national public education campaign to increase public awareness of the historical roots of racism in Canada and the impact it has had on racialized and religious minority communities, as well as on Indigenous peoples.

The strategy, announced ahead of October’s vote, is being pitched as a “first step” in a longer-term commitment in addressing racism and discrimination in Canada.

“Our government recognizes that we are in a unique position to address racism in our institutions and society. This national anti-racism strategy is an essential first step in building a more inclusive country,” Rodriguez said in a statement.

BACKGROUNDER: Budget 2019: New anti-racism strategy unveiled in budget

Between October 2018 and March 2019, the Department of Canadian Heritage held 22 closed-door consultations across Canada on the creation of a new strategy, as well as hosting an online questionnaire for all Canadians to provide comments.

The strategy’s release today comes after Independent MP Celina Caesar-Chavannes recently said qualified Black Canadians are being passed over for promotions to senior positions within the public service.

As a final act in the House, she tabled a private members’ bill last week that would require the Canadian Human Rights Commission to specifically report annually on federal efforts to promote Black Canadians and other visible minorities to more senior positions within the public service.

Caesar-Chavannes, who is not running for re-election, told the Canadian Press that there has been a “thinning out” of visible minorities at the assistant-deputy-minister level and no Black person has ever been appointed as a federal deputy minister.

A recent survey of nine countries also found Canadian visible minorities are 11 per cent more likely to face discrimination in hiring than their American counterparts.

Researchers at Northwestern University looked at more than 200,000 job applications, and broke down the results by race, to see whether minority candidates with similar qualifications to white ones got as many callbacks. Canada was the third-worst country examined in the study, which also looked at the U.K., Sweden, Germany, France and the U.S.

Today’s strategy also provides working definitions for Islamophobia and anti-Semitism, adopting the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s wording for the latter term. The strategy also includes $6.2 million to improve data collection on race and ethnicity.

In 2018, the Liberal government set aside $19 million as a “first step” towards recognizing the challenges faced by Black Canadians and focus on Black youth and enhancing mental health supports for the Black community.

Meanwhile, the 2019 budget acknowledged “ultra-nationalist” movements have emerged across the world and such groups are “unfairly targeting new Canadians, racialized individuals and religious minorities.”

According to Statistics Canada, police-reported hate crimes motivated by religion, race, or ethnicity, increased by 47 per cent in 2017.

Source: New office will tackle racism in federal institutions as part of $45M national plan

Filed under Multiculturalism, Racism Tagged with , ,

Health Canada Unveils Canada’s Food Guide Snapshot in 17 multicultural languages

2019/06/26 Leave a comment

While a good initiative, it looks like Health Canada simply looked at a list of languages most often spoken at home, without consideration of where the need is greatest (more recent immigrant groups than older waves of immigrants such as those of German or Italian origin):

Canada is a country that prides itself on its diversity. With more than 37 million people in Canada, we have many residents whose first language is neither English nor French, and who come from a variety of cultural backgrounds.

Minister of Health, Ginette Petitpas Taylor, announced the translation of Canada's Food Guide Snapshot into additional languages in Brampton, ON on June 24th. (CNW Group/Health Canada)

Today, the Honourable Ginette Petitpas Taylor, Minister of Health, announced the translation of Canada’s new Food Guide Snapshot into 17 multicultural languages, namely, Arabic, Farsi, German, Hindi, Italian, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Simplified Chinese (Mandarin), Spanish, Tagalog, Tamil, Traditional Chinese, Urdu and Vietnamese. This translated guidance will help people whose first language is not English or French make healthy eating choices for themselves and their families.

Canada’s new Food Guide already recognizes that nutritious foods can reflect cultural preference and food traditions. Making the Food Guide snapshot available in additional languages means that more Canadians will be able to access its healthy eating guidance.

In addition, through the Food Guide, Canadians can expand and adapt their healthy eating and food preparation skills as they explore recipes and cooking methods from their own cultural backgrounds and the cultural backgrounds of others.

The new Food Guide is an integral part of the Healthy Eating Strategy, which aims to make the healthier choice the easier choice for all Canadians.

Source: Health Canada Unveils Canada’s Food Guide Snapshot in 17 multicultural languages

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with

Songs of Afro-Turk star unveil grief of being ethnic minority in Turkey

2019/06/26 Leave a comment

Interesting vignette:

The hardship of being a member of Turkey’s African minority shines through in the music of Esmeray Diriker, an Afro-Turkish singer who was better known during her lifetime as a singer of songs related to the military, cultural anthropologist and record collector Kornelia Binicewicz said in a 2016 article for Emirati newspaper the National.

Esmeray’s ancestors were brought to Anatolia from Morocco as slaves, alongside others who were transported to the Ottoman Empire from Zanzibar, Kenya, Sudan, Niger, Libya and Saudi Arabia.

The singer became famous in Turkey after her 1977 single, “Gel Tezkere Gel” (Come, discharge letter, come), about young Turkish soldiers pining for home during their obligatory military service. She went on to release albums and singles for decades until her death in 2002.

“Unutma Beni”(Don’t forget me) is another track which Esmeray to her to fame.

“But how was she perceived as a black Turkish artist in a country where there was little place for the multiculturalism and the diversity of the Ottoman era?” Binicewicz asked in her article for United Arab Emirates-based The National.

The answer lies in her other songs in which “some feelings of frustration and prejudice can be heard”, she said.

Esmeray’s song “13,5”, the piece that attracted the cultural anthropologist the most,  addresses an old, yet common, prejudice against dark-skinned people in Turkey. The superstition suggests that you should pinch yourself whenever you see someone with dark skin.

Esmeray strived to make people look at being different in their own country from a different standpoint, according to Binicewicz.

“She deserves respect and appreciation, not only as an outstanding vocalist, but also as a messenger of social equality and mutual respect,” Binicewicz said.

Source: Songs of Afro-Turk star unveil grief of being ethnic minority in Turkey

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Outrage as Peter Schäfer, Director of Berlin’s Jewish Museum, Accused of BDS Sympathies

2019/06/26 Leave a comment

Of note:

Peter Schäfer, the director of Berlin’s Jewish Museum, resigned last Friday, a year before he was due to retire, forced out after the backlash over a tweet from the museum’s official account that linked to a pro-Israel-boycott story. But since the controversy erupted, hundreds of scholars of Judaic Studies from around the world have been signing letters in his defense.

The often bitter debate centers on perceived support for the “Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions” (BDS) movement meant to pressure Israel in its dealings with Palestinians. The museum’s tweet shared an article that had appeared in the German newspaper Die Tageszeitung (TAZ) that discussed a June 3 letter signed by 240 Jewish and Israeli scholars delivered to the German government.

The scholars’ letter condemned a parliamentary proposition that had passed on May 17 that linked the BDS movement with anti-Semitism. The scholars argued that linking BDS to anti-Semitism was counterproductive, writing that doing so “does not assist” but rather “undermines” the fight against anti-Semitism.

A later tweet from the museum clarified that its aim was to share the arguments raised by these scholars about the problems with linking BDS to anti-Semitism, not to support the BDS movement itself.

But there was a storm of denunciations, many of them on social media, beginning with one that claimed, “The Jewish Museum in Berlin obviously sees as its task to take a stand against Jewish life in our country and especially against Israel.”

In his resignation letter Schäfer, who will be 76 this month, said that his decision to resign was “to prevent further damage to the museum.”

Following Schäfer’s resignation, Schäfer’s supporters in the realm of Judaic Studies began to mobilize.

“We are united in our profound admiration for Prof. Schäfer as a scholar, academic leader, and public intellectual.”
— 50 Talmud scholars in an open letter

Two petitions were quickly organized. The first, signed by 50 Talmud scholars, including Ishay Rosen-Zvi (Tel Aviv University) and Moulie Vidas (Princeton University), read, “We are scholars of the Talmud and Ancient Judaism who hold diverse and even opposing opinions regarding the BDS movement. But we are united in our profound admiration for Prof. Schäfer as a scholar, academic leader, and public intellectual.”

Source: Outrage as Peter Schäfer, Director of Berlin’s Jewish Museum, Accused of BDS Sympathies

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

After Quebec’s secularism law, Muslim women gather to figure out, ‘What can we do now?’

2019/06/26 Leave a comment

Interesting vignettes:

The women hold one hand to their chest and the other to their stomach as they’re told to breathe in and then out.

The workshop started with a guided meditation and a short discussion about how to cope emotionally with Quebec’s new secularism law, which bars them from wearing religious symbols at certain jobs. But it’s clear the 20 or so Muslim women here aren’t ready to relax.

A short time later, they’re at the edge of their seats shooting questions at lawyer William Korbatly about the law’s ins and outs.

What they really want to know is how to fight it.

“What is this law? What can we do now?” one woman lets out, shaking her head. “It’s ridiculous. I want us to end this law. It’s unjust.”

Considering social media campaigns — or self-defence

The women begin pitching ideas. Can they go around the law? Are there different ways they can hide their hair, perhaps?

“You put a wig on top of your hijab,” says Mejda Mouaffak, an elementary school teacher, with a laugh.

A social media campaign uniting different faiths (Judaism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity) in solidarity against the law is pitched. Another campaign, to make fun of the law, is suggested. Self-defence workshops are another idea, ones that also touch on verbal attacks and how to react.

The workshop in an empty community centre in a northwestern Montreal neighbourhood ends up lasting nearly two hours longer than planned. The discussions are as nuanced and diverse as its participants, who hail from different backgrounds and ages and practice a range of professions.

Most of them wear a hijab.

‘We can be Muslim and feminist’

The gathering was organized for Muslim women to regroup after Quebec’s new CAQ government pushed through two key pieces of legislation, both affecting people of colour in the province, during a marathon weekend in the National Assembly the week before.

The new secularism law forbids certain groups of public servants — including teachers, police officers and government lawyers — from wearing religious symbols on the job. Critics say it impedes people’s right to practice their religion, and disproportionately targets Muslim women who wear a headscarf.

Participant Sara Hassanien wants to connect with Quebec feminists, a group that has been vocal in favour of the law, particularly in French media.

“I’m trying to tell them that unlike what you’ve always thought … we can be Muslim and feminist,” she said, noting there are about as many reasons women wear the hijab as there are women who do.

‘I totally understand what Quebec has been through’

Hassanien says, on the other hand, it’s important for her community to know the history of Quebec’s difficult relationship with the Catholic church.

“I totally empathize with you,” Hassanien told CBC later, as if addressing Quebec feminists.

“I totally understand what Quebec has been through. I understand that your mothers, your grandmothers, fought so hard for women’s liberation and I support that. I am here to comfort them, to reassure them that we are not ever going to call for going back.”

At the same time, Hassanien says she is tired of feeling like she has to speak for her entire community in spaces where it is under-represented.

‘The consquences can only be absurd’

Korbatly agreed with the women pointing out contradictions they see in the law: that the definition of “religious symbol” is vague and applies more to the Christian cross than the hijab, which they say is more of a practice.

He explained how disrespecting the law could lead to people being fired.

“When you have an absurd law, the consequences can only be absurd,” Korbatly told the group.

He hopes the legal challenge to the law launched last week, which argues Quebec can’t bypass Canadians’ right to religious freedom, will be successful.

Law effectively prevents a teacher’s promotion

Afterward, he told CBC News though the law does not affect him directly — he is Muslim, but does not wear religious garb — he felt it was his duty “to be there, present and give moral and legal support to the community.”

During the discussion he called himself a feminist “through and through.”

Amina B., who wished to withhold her last name because of fear it would affect her employment, is a substitute teacher.

The law effectively prevents her from being promoted to any other public education role in the province. It includes a grandfather clause that protects people hired before March 28, but as soon as they are promoted or access another position covered by the law, it applies.

‘This is shaking me to the core’

Amina had signed up for a two-year online teacher program at the University of Ottawa, but she’s not sure she’ll complete it now.

“If that means I will always have to be a substitute teacher, and that I can’t evolve, what’s the point?”

She came to the workshop because “when you get involved, maybe, you can make things change.”

Hassanien is an ESL teacher for a private company. She says it was important for her to join, too, because “I started to feel helpless about what’s happening on a daily basis to me as a veiled woman in Montreal.”

She says her trips on public transit now fill her with anxiety and fear that she will be harassed. Even strange looks are a cause of stress.

“This is shaking me to the core,” she said.

Spike in public harassment

The event was organized by Hanadi Saad, who founded Justice Femme after the first attempt by a Quebec government to legislate religious garb, when it was led by the Parti Québécois in 2013, to offer legal and psychological support to Muslim women who face harassment.

Since Bill 21, the current law, was introduced in May, her group has seen a spike in the public harassment of Muslim women in Quebec.

“It’s like we opened the door: ‘Now, you can go ahead and discriminate,'” Saad said, calling the law “violent.”‘I feel like they are taking a part of me’

Saad immigrated to Canada with her family 30 years ago during the Lebanese Civil War and has lived in Quebec for 18 years. She says Quebec has been her true home ever since.

But she’ll be visiting Lebanon for the second time in those years this summer and wonders if it’ll feel more like home this time.

“I feel like they are taking a part of me, of my existence,” said Saad, who no longer wears a headscarf. She said it was a decision that took her months.

“To ask these women to take their hijab off, it’s like asking you to take your T-shirt off.”

Saad sees a silver lining, though.

“Now what has to be done, it’s to stand up for our rights as women. We are appropriating our cause; it’s women’s cause. So I will thank this government for what he’s creating, because he’s forcing us to come together.”

Source: After Quebec’s secularism law, Muslim women gather to figure out, ‘What can we do now?’

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

ICYMI: As immigration policy changes, so does work of Catholic organizations

2019/06/25 Leave a comment

Of note:

Welcoming the stranger,” said Bill Canny, executive director of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Migration and Refugee Services (MRS), who participated in a webinar June 18 addressing the findings of the survey.

One of the changes for institutions such as MRS, Canny said, came about with the Trump administration’s drastic reduction of refugees allowed into the country. Since Congress passed the Refugee Act in 1980, the U.S. had admitted on average 95,000 refugees annually, and faith-based agencies, including many Catholic organizations, had since then stepped in to help with resettlement.

The number of refugees allowed into the country was capped at 45,000 after Donald Trump became president in 2017 and was scaled back to 30,000 refugees for fiscal year 2019. However, the cap does not reflect the actual number of those allowed to enter, it’s simply a limit.

“This had a relatively dramatic effect on the infrastructure that had developed over the last 30 years,” which was a well-oiled network dedicated to helping refugees and their families integrate into the country, Canny said. “There were some 320 affiliates across the U.S. in all states who were receiving refugees, and the Catholic Church, primarily Catholic Charities, represented about 90 of those.”

These days, 45 of those Catholic affiliates remain, Canny said, adding that at the same time that the refugee cap was shrinking, the number of asylum seekers was rising at the southern border.

“Nine resettlement agencies including our own, interestingly, began to turn their attention and resources toward those asylum seekers,” he said.

More funds started being raised for asylum seekers, more staff dedicated to helping them.

“You had a bit of an awakening,” Canny said.

Last year, MRS, which had focused on resettlement, instead mobilized to reunite families separated by a government policy that took children away from parents or guardians if they had entered at the U.S. southern border without documents. After great backlash and public outcry, the government sought the help of Catholic organizations as well as Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service to help after U.S. courts stepped in to stop the separations and demanded that families who had been separated be reunited by a particular date.

Donald Kerwin, executive director of the Center for Migration Studies, and one of the authors of the survey, said Catholic organizations have been making “extraordinary efforts to adapt and to serve immigrants despite all these various issues.”

The Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), for example, has dispatched staff to provide legal help along the U.S.-Mexico border and support for those helping immigrants forced to wait in Mexico until their asylum cases are heard, a new requirement of a policy announced by the Trump administration in late 2018. The “Remain in Mexico” policy requires those seeking asylum to petition at ports of entry and then wait for legal proceedings in Mexico until U.S. courts can hear their case.

Even as Catholic organizations have stepped up efforts to help, the fear some immigrant communities are experiencing is getting in the way of that help. Many are afraid of attending legal consultations that might help with their immigration status, accessing food, and even applying for a public service they’re eligible for, because of fear of deportation or that it might affect chances at citizenship in the future, Kerwin said.

The Trump administration has discussed instituting a “public charge” policy that would hurt immigrants’ chances at permanent residency, citizenship and even threatened deportation for those who sign up for public benefits. Some immigrants can’t tell what kind of help could harm them.

“These are obviously kind of very serious problems, most of all for immigrants, but also for Catholic agencies who are doing extraordinary work in trying to work around these problems,” Kerwin said.

Brian Corwin, executive vice president for Member Services of Catholic Charities USA, who also participated in the webinar, said clients are afraid to ask for help at food pantries and soup kitchens and don’t want to sign up for Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits for their U.S.-born children, who are eligible, because they are afraid it will affect another family member’s immigration situation.

“People are afraid to come forward, to get help,” Corwin said, recalling that a session to get families to sign up for the SNAP program, also known as food stamps, resulted in people not wanting to take the application and even the few who did, said they likely weren’t going to fill it out “because of fear that it might affect their immigration case and fear that their greencard (a residency card) might be revoked.”

Rampant misinformation, mistrust and “fear of the current rhetoric” are reasons people aren’t seeking help, said staff at one California Catholic Charities, he said.

“We haven’t even begun to do research on (housing) and the issue of mixed family status,” Corwin said.

But there are “bright lights” as agencies push to keep helping by working with dioceses and parishes, saying “we’re going to do something regardless of the climate,” Corwin said.

In places such as Minnesota, when attendance at Mass and other parish events waned after immigrants were apprehended and deported, church workers vowed to think differently. Sensing the fear parishioners had of leaving the house, one priest decided to take Mass to them – to an apartment complex.

“It was a great success,” said Estela Villagran Manancero, director of Latino ministry for the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, who participated in the webinar.

During major events, some parishes rented large buses to pick up parishioners who were afraid to drive lest they be detained, she said.

“It’s a little more expensive, but then we all can have security that they will not be detained,” said Villagran.

Parishioners in Minnesota also have organized so they can tag along, or drive those who are afraid, to doctor’s appointments, court dates, to take their children to school, Villagran said.

“I think people that are serving are very much committed,” she said.

The survey mirrors what a lot of the organizations and parishes such as the ones in Minnesota are experiencing, Kerwin said, that “here’s more accompaniment … more services designed and geared to the moment that we’re living in. I think charities and parishes are very much focused on this issue.”

Source: As immigration policy changes, so does work of Catholic organizations

Filed under Immigration, Refugees Tagged with , ,

← Older posts

Newer posts →