Honourable senators, I stand today to speak on the anniversary of the London attack to remember the beautiful Afzaal family in London, Ontario, a grandmother, mother, father and a 15-year-old girl who were murdered simply because they were Muslim. A 9-year-old boy was hospitalized in serious condition and now finds himself orphaned, his whole family — three generations — having been stolen from him by hate.

The nature of the attack is shocking, but unfortunately it is not surprising. This is not the first time I have spoken about the rise of Islamophobia, and I fear it will not be the last. As government leaders, we regularly condemn Islamophobia, but this alone is not enough. It is time for concrete action rather than empty apologies or thoughts and prayers.

After the attack, many expressed their horror and outrage. A National Summit on Islamophobia was held the following month, where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reiterated the government’s solidarity with Muslim communities across Canada and its commitment to combat and denounce Islamophobia and all forms of racism and discrimination.

Sadly, I worry that this must have been an electoral ploy. Let’s not forget that a year later, the promise of a special envoy for Islamophobia has not been fulfilled, and yet I’m sure there is a suitable candidate among the 1.5 million Muslim Canadians across the country. Two months ago, five men were attacked in a drive-by shooting in Scarborough while leaving Ramadan prayers at their local mosque. And only a few weeks ago, two teenage girls were verbally and physically assaulted in St. John’s outside their place of work. These were high school students — really young girls.

Sadly, these events are not isolated as there has been a steady increase in Islamophobia since the beginning of the pandemic. Sobia Shaikh, chair of the Anti-Racism Coalition of Newfoundland and Labrador, shared that she hears about similar incidents every six weeks or so.

Honourable colleagues, xenophobic views have gone beyond online threats and abuse and have translated into hate-motivated physical harm. We need to act now before such Islamophobic attacks become normalized. We owe it to the Afzaal family and Muslim Canadians who continue to live in fear every time they leave their homes. Thank you.