News Releases & Statements


NCCM DEEPLY CONCERNED BY COMMENTS IN BOOK REVIEW BY INCOMING ALBERTA HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION CHAIR

(Edmonton - July 8, 2022)  We are concerned about incoming Alberta Human Rights Commission Chair Collin May’s comments in a 2009 book review. Quotes from that review include, “Islam is not a peaceful religion misused by radicals. Rather, it is one of the most militaristic religions known to man.”   The purpose of the Alberta Human Rights Commission is to reduce discrimination and promote equality. Mr. May’s commentary in a 2009 review of author Efraim Karsh’s book Islamic Imperialism (published in an online platform called C2C Journal) does not reflect ...

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NCCM ANNOUNCES THE OPENING OF NEW OFFICE IN SASKATCHEWAN

(Ottawa - June 28, 2022)  As NCCM continues to grow, we are excited to formally announce the opening of our new office in Saskatchewan.    This is a major step for NCCM as we further realize our vision as a national organization that advocates across Canada, including our great prairie provinces.    A big part of this expansion into Saskatchewan has been made possible by the hiring of Daniel J. Kuhlen, NCCM’s new Senior Legal Counsel in the region.    “The expansion into Saskatchewan is a huge step for NCCM’s vision as a national organization ...

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NCCM AND IFSSA RELEASE REPORT CALLING FOR AN END TO THE PRIVATIZATION OF CANADA’S FEDERAL PRISON CHAPLAINCY PROGRAM

(Edmonton - June 21, 2022)  NCCM and the Islamic Family and Social Services Association (IFSSA) are co-publishing a report today that calls for an end to the privatization of Canada’s federal prison chaplaincy program. Under the Harper government in 2013, Canada privatized our federal chaplaincy program in a move that was widely criticized as an attack on non-Christian chaplains.     The report published today shows that today’s model, which concentrates all these services and processes under the purview of a single private contractor, Bridges of Canada, ...

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DAR AL-TAWHEED AND NCCM WELCOME CHARGES OF TERRORISM AGAINST MARCH 19TH ATTACKER

(Mississauga - June 8th, 2022)  The attack on Mississauga, Ontario’s Dar Al-Tawheed (DAT) Islamic Centre on March 19th shook our community, which has been increasingly victimized by hateful violence. Both NCCM and DAT therefore welcome today’s charging of that morning’s alleged attacker with seven counts of terrorism related charges.   On the morning of March 19th, brave mosque attendees stopped an intruder who attacked the praying congregation with bear spray while wielding a hatchet. Several weapons were also strapped on his body, including knives. Praying ...

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NCCM WELCOMES COMMITMENT TO INTRODUCE LEGISLATION FROM MP SALMA ZAHID ON THE DUTY OF CANDOUR

(Ottawa - June 6th, 2022)  Today represents an important juncture in Canadian civil society’s continuing efforts to hold its national security apparatus accountable.    NCCM welcomes MP Salma Zahid’s proposed tabling of legislation that could spell out new consequences for agents and leaders of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), as well as lawyers of the Department of Justice, who violate their Duty of Candour in court.    The Federal Court has found CSIS and its leaders to have repeatedly violated this duty over the years in a long-st...

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HUNDREDS OF CANADIAN MUSLIM LEADERS TO GATHER IN OTTAWA TO ADVOCATE FOR CHAGNE ON ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF LONDON, ONTARIO TERROR ATTACK

(Ottawa - June 6th, 2022)  Today, we mark the one-year anniversary of the Islamophobic terror attack in London, Ontario that took the lives of four members of a Muslim family and left one child seriously injured. The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) is convening Canadian Muslim leaders from across the country to gather in Ottawa on June 6th to advocate for change to address Islamophobia and hate crimes in this country.    “Our London Family was taken from us on June 6th last year simply because of their Muslim identity and faith. We have so much work ...

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SUPREME COURT OF CANADA DECISION ON QUEBEC CITY MOSQUE SHOOTER’S SENTENCE

(Montreal - May 27, 2022)  The Supreme Court of Canada’s decision on Friday to keep Quebec City mosque gunman Alexander Bissonnette’s parole ineligibility period to 25 years will be received with difficulty by many, particularly for those in the community he ravaged on the night of January 29th, 2017. The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) had intervener status in this case.  Bissonnette had pled guilty to murdering six Muslim worshippers at Quebec City’s Islamic Cultural Centre that night, while injuring and maiming 19 others.   Friday’s ...

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CAI AND NCCM CALL ON NHL TO IMPLEMENT A LIFELONG BAN OF RACIST FANS IN AFTERMATH OF ATTACKS ON NAZEM KADRI

(Toronto - May 26, 2022)  Over the long weekend, while Canadian families from across the country tuned into NHL playoffs, Arab-Muslim-Canadian Colorado Avalanche player, Nazem Kadri, and his family were the subject of fierce anti-Arab-racist and Islamophobic social media posts and death threats, after he was involved in a collision at a game on Saturday night that left another player out for the rest of the series.   The Canadian Arab Institute (CAI) and the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) unreservedly condemn the anti-Arab racism and Islamophobia ...

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NCCM WELCOMES NEWS THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT WILL INTERVENE IN THE LEGAL CHALLENGE AGAINST QUEBEC’S BILL 21 IF IT REACHES THE SUPREME COURT

(Montréal - May 25, 2022)  In 2019, the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) and the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), with the lead plaintiff Ichrak Nourel Hak, began a court challenge against the Quebec Act respecting the laicity of the State, better known as Bill 21. Bill 21 bars certain civil servants—including prosecutors, police officers, and teachers —from wearing religious symbols (like hijabs, turbans, kippahs, and more) at work in Quebec.  Bill 21 is a discriminatory piece of legislation that targets marginalized communities by ...

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NCCM WELCOMES ANTI-RACISM DATA ACT IN B.C

(Ottawa - May 3, 2022)  The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) welcomes the introduction of the Anti-Racism Data Act by the government of British Columbia. The Act legislates the responsible usage and sharing of data to address issues of systemic racism in government programs.  "Systemic racism shows up in the lives of Muslim and racialized communities in Canada in many different sites. It is crucial that our government programs not be one of those sites. The B.C. government's Anti-Racism Data Act is an important first step to responsible data usage that ...

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