Letters to the Editor

Sympathy for Victims

Re: “Muslim students subject to hate crime”

We were horrified to hear that six Muslim students — members of our Queen’s community — were victims of a recent hate-motivated attack.

Such a disgusting incident is an attack on the values we all hold dear as Canadians, including the right of minorities to live in freedom without fear.

We stand in solidarity with the Muslim community in condemning this incident. We offer our sympathy to the victims and we call on police to do all they can to ensure that the full weight of justice falls on the perpetrators.

Jodi Basch and Alana Spira
Queen’s Hillel Presidents

Speak out Against Hate

Re: “Muslim students subject to hate crime”

As a recent alumnus of Queen’s University, stumbling upon this article greatly saddens me (disgusts is a probably a better word) and I hope nothing more than the health of the individuals are affected and that those responsible are brought to justice.

I, unfortunately, cannot help but draw lines with what is occurring in the other linguistic solitude (a hop to the north followed by a skip and a jump to the east).

Since the release of the Parti Quebecois’ now internationally-infamous Charter of Values, there has been an outpouring of opinions of both support and condemnation from journalists in the French and English media.

The debate on what is involved in the creation of a modern secular society, not only in Quebec, is a timely and necessary debate.

Unfortunately, Minister Drainville and Premier Marois’ completely inadequate and disastrous initial leak of this charter has created an antagonistic atmosphere where racism and xenophobia has moved from the comments section of personal blog posts to being a seemingly legitimate political allegiance.

We have always been and will always be a country of immigrants of all stripes and colours. Fortunately, there is no secret rank order making any race, cultural belief or religion more Canadian than the next.

Who are we, in 2013, as a state, to believe that we have found a litmus test to screen a veteran Canadian from a rookie one?

My Queen’s University was a place of openness where debate and advocacy were a way of life.

Let us not be ignorant or indifferent to this. Such policy not only sets precedent, but also inevitably affects the international reputation of Canada as a functioning model of multiculturalism. Speak out, Gaels!

Jonathan Gravel
ArtSci ’09