Read the report

On 29 January 2017, 46 people were attacked in the Great Mosque of Quebec during evening prayer. Six people were killed, five were seriously injured, and many others live with unimaginable trauma. Moreover, the psychological impacts of the Quebec mosque shooting continue to reverberate in Muslim communities across Canada.

Alarmingly, this tragedy was not an isolated incident. The Quebec mosque shooting has been followed by a series of other violent attacks against Muslim communities, including in Edmonton, Saskatoon, London, Mississauga and Toronto.

Muslims have been important contributors to Canadian society since before Confederation. Now representing 4.9% of the Canadian population,^[1] Muslims continue to serve communities across Canada in countless ways. Despite their rich and varied contributions to Canadian society, Muslims are often unfairly vilified and marginalized.

The Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights (the committee) was disturbed to hear that incidents of Islamophobia are a daily reality for many Muslims, that one in four Canadians do not trust Muslims,^[2] and that Canada leads the G7 in terms of targeted killings of Muslims motivated by Islamophobia.^[3]

What is fueling the rise of Islamophobia, what are its effects, and how can we reverse these disturbing trends? These are the questions that prompted the committee to undertake its study on Islamophobia in Canada.

Evidence was gathered during site visits to Muslim communities in British Columbia (B.C.), Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, through written submissions, and in 21 public meetings featuring a wide range of experts and stakeholders. The committee heard from 138 witnesses during public meetings, as well as from many others who spoke to the committee informally during its visits to communities across the country.

The committee wishes to thank the many witnesses who shared their individual experiences of enduring Islamophobia, including incidents of physical violence, online harassment, bullying and discrimination. Their courage deserves recognition, and their experiences demand action.

In particular, the committee wishes to acknowledge the witnesses who recalled traumatic experiences. For example, in Edmonton, the committee heard powerful stories of Muslim women being physically and verbally assaulted, including at knifepoint. These stories were often difficult to share, but they provided the committee with valuable insights into the complex ways in which Islamophobia combines with other forms of prejudice in Canadian society.

Islamophobia is a complex phenomenon that takes many forms. Canada’s anti-racism strategy 2019–2022 states that Islamophobia:

Includes racism, stereotypes, prejudice, fear or acts of hostility directed towards individual Muslims or followers of Islam in general. In addition to individual acts of intolerance and racial profiling, Islamophobia can lead to viewing and treating Muslims as a greater security threat on an institutional, systemic and societal level.^[4]

This report includes 13 recommendations based on witness testimony, data, and calls to action from Muslim communities. While there is no single solution to the complex problem of Islamophobia, the committee’s recommendations are designed to ensure that Muslims are empowered to live, work, and pray in safety, on an equal basis with all Canadians. Following the committee’s recommendations, this report is divided into four major sections, which outline what the committee heard over the course of its study and provide further context for the committee’s recommendations.

The first section of the report outlines the intersectional nature of Islamophobia. The committee heard that Islamophobia combines with other forms of prejudice, such as sexism, racism, ableism and homophobia, resulting in experiences of discrimination that are at once unique and tragically predictable.

The second section discusses hate-motivated crimes and the role of law enforcement and federal institutions in addressing them. The horrific acts of violence targeting Muslims in recent years have left Muslim communities feeling like they are constantly under attack and that they are physically unsafe. More needs to be done to strengthen legislative and policy frameworks to protect Muslim communities.

The third section discusses the role of the media and misinformation in the spread of Islamophobia, as well as avenues to confront this phenomenon. The media and the Internet often amplify and perpetuate hateful attitudes, but also have enormous potential to change harmful narratives of discrimination and hate. Similarly, the education system presents both challenges and opportunities for confronting hatred and ignorance, as it reflects the society in which it exists, but can also help change it for future generations.

The final section of the report outlines issues of systemic discrimination. Too often, individual acts of hatred are compounded by systemic Islamophobia, which persists – intentionally or not – through laws, policies and practices in a range of areas, including national security, secularism, workplace discrimination and the federal correctional system. For example, the committee heard extensive evidence of Muslim charities being disproportionately scrutinized by the Canada Revenue Agency without evidence showing that Muslim charities presented any additional risk. The federal government needs to comprehensively examine and correct the prejudices embedded in these and other areas of law and policy.

In summary, Islamophobia is present in Canadian society and in many of our institutions. This is an uncomfortable fact for many Canadians, but one that must be confronted head on. This report highlights numerous personal experiences as well as evidence and expert perspectives presented to the committee, pointing to the need for urgent action to reverse the alarming trajectory of Islamophobia in Canada.

The committee urges the federal government and all elements of Canadian society to take concrete action in response to this report and its recommendations. 

• [1] Statistics Canada, The Daily, The Canadian census: A rich portrait of the country’s religious and ethnocultural diversity, 26 October 2022.
• [2] Sarah Khetty, “Final Submission to Senate Committee Islamophobia Study”, Brief submitted to the committee, 22 September 2022.
• [3] Senate, Standing Committee on Human Rights [RIDR], Evidence, 13 June 2022 (Mustafa Farooq, Chief Executive Director, National Council of Canadian Muslims).
• [4] Canadian Heritage, Building a Foundation for Change: Canada’s Anti-Racism Strategy 2019–2022. For a discussion of the committee’s choice of the term ‘Islamophobia’ in this report see Appendix A: Terminology.

Read the government response

Ex-officio members: The Honourable Senator Marc Gold, P.C. or Patti LaBoucane-Benson, The Honourable Senator Donald Plett or Yonah Martin

Other Senators who have participated in the study: The Honourable Senator Michèle Audette, The Honourable Senator Yvonne Boyer, The Honourable Senator Bev Busson, The Honourable Senator Andrew Cardozo, The Honourable Senator Jane Cordy, The Honourable Senator Dennis Dawson (retired), The Honourable Senator Pat Duncan, The Honourable Senator Leo Housakos, The Honourable Senator Victor Oh, The Honourable Senator Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia, The Honourable Senator Paula Simons, The Honourable Senator Yuen Pau Woo.