Imams, rabbis and other religious leaders in London unite against Islamophobia and anti-semitism

Religious leaders in London, Ont., have come together to encourage Londoners to stand against rising hate crimes targeting both Jewish and Muslim communities, in the midst of ongoing violence in the Middle East. 

More than 60 interfaith leaders in the city signed a letter calling for compassion, peace and an end to hatred, asking people to instead acknowledge the pain and loss that many communities are feeling. 

"We each have our sense of pain and suffering that we're experiencing and we want to come together to provide a message that we do not accept the violence that is taking place where innocent lives are being taken," said Imam Abd Alfatah Twakkal of London Council of Imams.

The statement of solidarity comes as acts of antisemitism and Islamophobia have significantly increased across Canada since the Israel-Hamas war broke out on Oct. 7.  

Last month, graffiti was found in the stairwell of a south London apartment building calling for genocide against all Muslims. On Thursday, shots were fired at two Jewish schools in Montreal, with reports of synagogues and Jewish Community Centres also being targeted. 

The enormous uptick in antisemitic acts has been disheartening to see, but it highlights the importance of compassion despite differing viewpoints, said Rabbi Debra Dressler of the Temple Israel of London.

"What we were trying to accomplish with the letter is to give people a different version of how to navigate and that we have common ground around peace," she said. "In a time when it's very easy to only see negative, it was important to us to say that we can still hold each other's pain."

There has been a 1300 per cent increase in Islamophobia, said Twakkal, emphasizing that hate needs to be countered with humanity that is shared among all faith groups.

Continuing to walk together

There's been a long history of building relationships among various faith groups in London who always stand together, especially in difficult times, said Rev. Canon Kevin George of St. Aidan's Anglican Church.

"We've worked hard to foster that in some extremely difficult circumstances and we're still having the conversations and trying very hard to continue to walk together," he said.

"We want to model for the wider community that as faith leaders who may have differences of opinion at times, we care deeply for each other and for Londoners in our respective communities."

Dressler believes it's important to find ways to keep hope alive, and coming together and listening to each other can foster healing, she said. 

"We don't have to agree to still affirm each other's humanities, these relationships are precious to us and we need to have the long view where we have to continue to co-exist, and we don't want to give everything up bc of this moment," Dressler said. 

"It's important that we're able to express our voices, while acknowledging the humanity that exists in all of us so that we're able to have more difficult conversations to come to the same result, which at the end of the day is peace for everyone," Twakkal added.

The leaders acknowledge that many communities are feeling "an incredible amount of despair," but they believe leading by example of unity can give Londoners a glimmer of hope and comfort, they said.