THE National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) and the Muslim Students Association (MSA) say they are very grateful to the Simon Fraser University (SFU) administration for taking action after an individual urinated in front of a Muslim student and allegedly used an Islamophobic slur at the Surrey campus interfaith and prayer space in early June.
Since the incident, the SFU administration, NCCM, and MSA have engaged in productive dialogue. As per a recent letter sent to the MSA by the SFU administration, Simon Fraser University has promised to take a number of steps to address the situation, including but not limited to conducting a review of SFU’s interfaith and prayer spaces and producing a report of recommendations to ensure SFU standards for safe, welcoming spaces.
“We welcomed the opportunity to work constructively with the SFU administration after this incident to address Islamophobia on campus,” says NCCM’s Executive Director Mustafa Farooq. “While the attack itself was disgusting and made students feel unsafe, we are happy to see the University take this so seriously, and to take steps to keep SFU safe, welcoming, and inclusive.”
Ahmed Khan, SFU MSA President, said, “This disgusting incident reflects the fact that Islamophobia is on the rise and it needs to be tackled. We are grateful that SFU has listened to our concerns and has taken the appropriate steps to address the incident.”