South African Canadian Zakira Jogiat participated in her Canadian Citizenship Ceremony while wearing niqab. She reflects on the opportunities for dialogue the current niqab debates have opened up.

On March 14th, thousands of Canadians gathered across the country in over 70 communities to show their outrage over the Conservative government’s proposed Anti-Terrorism Act, Bill C-51. Everyone from Canada’s Privacy Commissioner, to NDP Party Leader Tom Mulcair and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May, to former Prime Ministers Paul Martin, Jean Chretien , and Joe Clark, have spoken out against this Bill, stating that it will needlessly infringe on the civil liberties of Canadians and also will probably not increase national security. Despite this, the Conservative and Liberal Parties have stated that they will vote in favour of the Bill.

A twitter photo by Amna Qureshi just went viral. Posted in protest of Montrealer Rania El-Alloul being told by Judge Eliana Marengo that she had to remove her hijab in order to be “suitably dressed” in a “secular” Canadian courtroom. The incident made the ongoing Islamophobia that Muslim women who wear hijab or niqab face in accessing services a national issue. It also raised the question of how Muslim women lawyers who veil will be treated within the legal system.
As part of Muslim Link’s ongoing So You Want To… Series where we interview Muslims about their programs of study or career choices, Amna Qureshi, a graduate from the Law School at the University of Ottawa discusses the opportunities and challenges pursuing a law degree offers for Muslim women. A Pakistani Canadian, Qureshi now works as a staff lawyer at Legal Aid Alberta.

Born and raised in British Columbia, Islamic Studies teacher Hafsa Dean Thompson will be participating in this year’s I.LEAD Conference. She will be leading a women’s only session addressing the challenges Muslim women face in finding balance in their daily lives.

Muslim Link had the chance to interview her about her pursuit of Islamic scholarship, her community work with Muslim women in crisis and in prison, and why she prefers to focus her educational efforts on women only.

Muslim Link welcomes the current debate the recent changes to Ontario’s sexual education curriculum has stirred within the Muslim community particularly as it is encouraging parents to be more engaged in what their children are learning at school. We are publishing one perspective on the new curriculum from a Muslim Canadian principal in a Toronto-area public school. We hope to hear other perspectives on this issue and welcome submissions which are in agreement or in opposition. You may submit them to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. To view an opposing opinion, read this interview with Farina Siddiqui.

Muslim Link attended MAC’s Canadian Family Day event on February 16 and asked people: What Does Family Mean To You? Here is the response from poet and playwright Habiba Ali along with her siblings Asha and Abdullahi Ali.

With the RRSP deadline on March 2nd, many Canadians are wondering and worrying about where to invest their hard-earned money. For Muslim Canadians, the challenge is two-fold, as not only are they looking for investments that are financially sound, they also need to ensure that their investments are religiously sound, or Shari’ah compliant or halal (Islamically permissible).

Muslim Link attended MAC’s Canadian Family Day event on February 16 and asked people: What Does Family Mean To You? Mohammed Saleem, principal of Abraar School, spoke about family with his eldest son Omar, 13, and his youngest son Bilal, 4.

Muslim Link attended MAC’s Canadian Family Day event on February 16 and asked people: What Does Family Mean To You? Nesrin Lachica, originally from the Philippines, met Mohammad and Salwa Al Azzouni’s Arab father in Saudi Arabia, creating a very culturally mixed family which has set up roots in Canada as the children have come and settled here as international students.

The Muslim Association of Canada (MAC) invites Muslim families to take part in their Canadian Family Day program on Monday, February 16th, from 1pm to 5pm, at the new MAC Youth Centre.

This event is an opportunity for families to experience the new facility including its programs, its lounge and its athletic spaces.