A cartoon image of four women wearing hijabs on a map of Canada.
October is National Islamic History Month in Canada. Credit: Breanne Doyle / Canva / Canva Credit: Breanne Doyle / Canva / Canva

Update, October 17, 2022 — Nuzhat Jafri, executive director of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women (CCMW) will also be joining our panel this month.

Join rabble.ca on October 18, 2022 at 7:30PM ET for “Off the Hill: Confronting Islamophobia in Canada.”

October is National Islamic History Month. With Islamophobia and racism on the rise in Canada, what cultural responses and political actions are needed? Join our regular co-hosts Robin Browne and Libby Davies as well as special guests Senator Salma Ataullahjan, rabble columnist Monia Mazigh, and rabble parliamentary reporter Karl Nerenberg this month.

Register for this free event here. Then, mark you calendar! Off the Hill is happening on October 18, 2022 at 7:30pm ET.

Off the Hill is a fast-paced live series which focuses on current issues of national significance. It features guests and a discussion you won’t find anywhere else, centred on the impact politics and policy have on people. Our series focuses on how to bring about progressive change in national politics — on and off the hill.

Our panel will deconstruct Islamophobia in Canada

Robin Browne is Off the Hill’s co-host. Robin is a communications professional and the co-lead of the 613-819 Black Hub, living in Ottawa. His blog is The “True” North.

Libby Davies is Off the Hill’s co-host and author of Outside In: a Political Memoir. She served as the MP for Vancouver East from 1997-2015, and is former NDP Deputy Leader and House Leader.

Senator Salma Ataullahjan was appointed to the Senate of Canada on July 9, 2010. She is Canada’s first senator of Pakistani origin. Ataullahjan is the chair of the Senate Committee on Human Rights. Currently, this committee is studying Islamophobia in Canada. 

Nuzhat Jafri is the executive director of the Canadian Council of Muslim Women (CCMW). She also serves on the board of directors of The Pluralist Foundation and has served as chair and member of several other non-profit boards. Her experience spans leadership roles in policy, communications, human resources, and legislative and regulatory compliance. She is an untiring advocate for human rights, equity, inclusion and accessibility.

Monia Mazigh immigrated from Tunisia to Canada in 1991. In 2002, she was catapulted onto the public stage in 2002 when her husband, Maher Arar, was deported to Syria where he was tortured and held without charge. She campaigned tirelessly for his release. Since then, Mazigh has published three books: Hope and Despair, a memoir about her pursuit of justice, and the fictional novels Mirrors and Mirages and Hope Has Two Daughters. Mazigh is also a columnist for rabble.ca

Karl Nerenberg is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and filmmaker, working in both English and French languages. He is rabble’s parliamentary correspondent and a regular Off the Hill panelist.