What Amira Elghawaby’s apology says about Islamophobia

Guests: Raisa Patel and Asmaa Malik

It was Jan. 26 when Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Amira Elghawaby, a visibly Muslim woman, as point-person on Islamophobia and just days later, Elghawaby found herself at the centre of a media storm with government officials calling for her resignation. Why? A 2019 opinion piece Elghawaby co-wrote about Quebec’s controversial Bill 21 resurfaced, in which she quoted from a poll that said support for the bill was linked to anti-Muslim sentiment. New reaction saw a dizzying wave of criticism from Quebec and members of the federal government that gave her the job, raising serious questions about Islamophobia in this country. Toronto Star Raisa Patel and Asmaa Malik, an associate professor of journalism at Toronto Metropolitan University, join “This Matters” to discuss.

This episode was produced by Saba Eitizaz, Alexis Green and Paolo Marques.

Audio sources: CPAC and Global News