Summer day camp aims to bridge the gap between Muslim and Canadian identities

A unique day camp in Calgary is designed to show youth that being Muslim and being Canadian are not mutually exclusive.

Organizers of the Iman Fortress Summer Camp hope that by reaching children at a young age, they'll set them up for success and potentially prevent extremism down the line.

Mohamed El-Rafih created the program after identifying a need in the community. 

"We've seen a growing disparity between our youth —  their Canadian identities, their country-of-origin identities," El-Rafih said.

At its core, the camp is designed to bridge that gap.

"To show youth that being Canadian, being Muslim are the same thing. They're not exclusive," El-Rafih said. 

He said the program addresses several questions.

"What is the best way for us to rectify our identity in this society? How can we be engaged? How can we be volunteers? How can we be a meaningful part of the system?"

Defining identity

The camp, which runs for three weeks every summer at the Genesis Centre in northeast Calgary, caters to children between five and 12 years old.

The kids spend their days learning everything from popular Canadian sports, such as basketball and soccer, to the basic values of Islam.

"We give them this kind of ideal image of what it means to be a Canadian with Muslim values," El-Rafih said.

"And the hope is that this is a layer of resiliency, so that if it came to the case that they came upon some self-proclaimed Imam, who is preaching violence, they will have a baseline and a standard to contrast that narrative with."

Embracing faith

On the last day of camp, young children proudly sing the Arabic alphabet for their parents. They're eager to display their new knowledge and skills. 

It's a proud moment for parents like Sara Tayab, whose five-year-old son and six-year-old daughter are both in the program.

"They love it," said Tayab, who came to Calgary from England before her children were born.

"I guess because we are Muslims and we follow Islam and I'd like them to be more knowledgeable about it.... I do feel like it just gives them awareness that there are people that are the same as them."

Other parents, such as Veena Seemab, believe the program gives their children the confidence and knowledge they need to explain their faith to their peers. Her six-year-old daughter is one of about 60 who attended this year.

"If some kid asks why you choose to dress like this, if my daughter knows why we wear hijab — why we are covering ourselves — then she, in positive manner, she can tell them," said Seemab. 

Countering negative messages

The program is also designed to help older kids deal with the increasingly polarized and negative messages they may witness in mainstream and social media.

"They hear 'jihadist' and 'Islamic terrorist' and 'Islamic state' and they hear that ... and their parents are telling them 'oh, you're Muslim, your religion is Islam.' That creates a conflicting identity," said El-Rafih.

"So they need to learn how to absorb that, what it means, dissociate ... and kind of reframe the messages they're taking from that."

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