'They're advancing radical views,' Calgary rabbi says after Holocaust-denying article posted on Muslim website
CBC News | Posted: February 1, 2018 8:24 PM | Last Updated: February 1, 2018
Spokesperson behind website says David Duke article was about freedom of speech
An organization called Muslims in Calgary is apologizing for posting a Holocaust-denying article on its website.
The article, which has since been taken down, outraged members of the Calgary Jewish community and raised questions about who is behind the website.
It was written by former KKK leader David Duke, who is now seeking a seat in the Louisiana state senate.
A spokesperson for the group, who refused to identify himself, told CBC News via email "it was not our intention to hurt anyone at all."
"We post many articles that cover a wide range of subjects for educational purpose. The article in question was concerned with our freedom of speech, taking the Holocaust as an example."
The Calgary Police Service says its hate crimes unit is investigating after a complaint was made about the controversial article.
The spokesman also told CBC News the organization "has no membership or members yet."
Calgary Rabbi Shaul Osadchey says he is close with many Muslim organizations in the city and he is very concerned about the tone and intentions of this group.
"What they're doing is they're advancing radical views that don't represent the overwhelming majority of the Muslim community," he said.
"And that's creating a lot of public relations issues, and again making the waters murky about what the Muslim community espouses and what extremists espouse."
Osadchey says he will be urging for the Muslim Council of Calgary to disavow the organization and its posting of the Duke article.
In a statement emailed to CBC News, the Muslim Council of Calgary also condemned the article, which it said was contemptible.
"The 'Muslims in Calgary' website is not representative of the Muslim Council of Calgary, its affiliate mosques, or the majority of Muslims in Calgary and their views," the statement said.
"We hope the police will investigate any reports of anti-antisemitism as we would expect investigations into Islamophobia."
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