Montrealers Mark the Eighth Commemoration of the Quebec City Mosque Attack with Muslim Awareness Week

Montreal, QC — Montreal residents are invited to gather to mark the eighth commemoration of the Quebec City mosque attack this Thursday January 29" starting at 4:30pm, with a public vigil at Metro Park Station (7245 Rue Hutchison, H3N 2X9). The event is organized by “Muslim Awareness Week.”

The event aims to honour and remember the six men who were killed in the massacre who included Ibrahima Barry,Mamadou Tanou Barry,Khaled Belkacemi, Aboubaker Thabti, Abdelkrim Hassane, Azzedine Soufiane. The event will feature guest speakers before a moment of silence is observed.

“It is disheartening that, even nine years after the attack at the Centre Culturel Islamique du Québec, where six Quebec Muslims lost their lives, hatred, fear, and intolerance toward Muslims continue to be instrumentalized to advance political agendas,” said Salam El Mousawi, Co-Founder of Muslim Awareness Week.

“We cannot let this tragedy be in vain. It robbed the lives of six innocent souls whose families were forever devastated and impacted. Their violent deaths left six widows without their husbands and 17 orphans without their fathers. Their stories should never be forgotten. We must always remember. Never again,” said Samira Laouni, Chair of Muslim Awareness Week.

This year’s vigil will hold additional significance with the observance of the fifth National Day of Remembrance of the Quebec City Mosque Attack and Action Against Islamophobia on January 29)

Vigils in memory of the Quebec City Mosque victims have been held across the country in the years since their death. This year’s event will include remarks from MAW Co-founders Samira Laouni and Salam El-Mousawi, as well as Mr. Youssef Hariri, City Councillor for Montréal-Nord; Ms. Ericka Alneus, Borough Councillor for Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie and Leader of the Official Opposition on City Council; Mr. Mohammed Hashim, Executive Director of the Canadian Race Relations Foundation (CRRF); Ms. Myrlande Pierre, Vice-President responsible for the Charter mandate at the Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse (CDPDJ); and Mr. Dave Poitra, Strategic and Scientific Director of the Centre for the Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence (CPRLV).