By: Waleed Ahmed
Source: http://muslimmatters.org/
The lunacy which has dominated the discourse coming out of Quebec over the last year has finally been countered with a dose of sanity. In a historic vote this Monday, the ruling Parti Québécois (PQ) suffered a major defeat after just 19 months of taking office. Premier Pauline Marois organized an ugly campaign which centered on identity politics and secession from Canada. Her gross miscalculations resulted in a humiliating loss and allowed the federalist Liberal party to form a majority government in the Francophone province.
The madness which characterized PQ’s odious agenda is best exemplified with their proposed secular ‘Charter of Values’. The notorious document, an affront to Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, proposed banning all public employees from wearing religious symbols: hijabs, turban, skullcaps – anything ‘conspicuous’. This Charter paved way to a discourse which was perhaps the most jaw dropping display of xenophobia and anti-Muslim rhetoric in recent history.
It become obvious quite soon that PQ’s main target were Muslims; other ethnic groups appeared to be collateral damage that got thrown in to maintain consistency in the bigotry. PQ candidate Jean Carriere posted a picture with the title ‘F–k Islam’ on his Facebook page – this resulted in him being expelled from the race. Another candidate, Louise Mailloux, repeatedly claimed that kosher and halal products are a scam setup by imām and Rabbis to help fund religious wars. Despite the pressure, Premier Marois stood by her candidate and said she respected her point of view. André Beaudoin, also a PQ candidate, expressed his fear that Muslim prayer could become a drain on the economy.
The abominable rhetoric continued with the likes of Janette Bertrand; a veteran activist who had been campaigning alongside Marois. She remarked last fall the she would not want to be…
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