Fw: Stand With Us Now and Protect Our future
Abida Rahmani
Begin forwarded message:
On Thursday, August 21, 2025, 2:36 AM, Omar Khamissa <in...@nccm.ca> wrote:
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Asalamu alaikum / Peace be upon you
This weekend, I was at a summer picnic with friends and family.
The sun was shining and, while I don’t go out very often given the amount of work we have here at NCCM, it was a dear friend who invited me.
I watched the children jump and splash and play at the park.
My gaze gradually shifted to the green grass that surrounded these children and lined the playground. It was beautiful until a terrible thought was triggered inside my mind.
Very recently at NCCM, we reminded people that the children of Gaza are eating grass to stay alive. Is it the same kind of grass that lined this playground? What does grass look like in Gaza?
I was suddenly plunged into a deep sadness: no matter how hard we’ve tried, our efforts for the children of Gaza remain wildly insufficient.
Don’t get me wrong: we’ve been able to lead critical efforts as a community, and the NCCM team has helped stand for the people of Gaza.
From the ostensible recognition of Palestinian statehood, to sanctions on Israel’s Foreign Minister, to the recognition of anti-Palestinian racism by the government, we have taken small but steady steps forward. We know that the vast majority of Canadians are watching with horror as a genocide is broadcast to them.
After all the reflection and caveats in my mind, I remembered how our own children—Muslims, Arabs, Palestinians—are being bullied, intimidated, and punished in classrooms simply for bringing up Gaza.
Just this past June, a 13-year-old boy had his valedictorian speech altered for mentioning Gaza. His parents were also accosted by the school principal’s family members when they asked about their son’s speech.
Stories like the one above is becoming common across Canada.
Send a letter to Ontario Education Minister Calandra to make sure that real changes are implemented to protect our kids.
Students have a right to freely express their thoughts about the world, including what’s happening in Gaza.
Support us as we help students on all levels keep their schools accountable.
Just this past weekend, we completed the second annual NCCM Student Leadership Summit, held at Toronto Metropolitan University.
Over 150 students selected for their leadership abilities joined us in a two organizing meetings every day with our local Advocacy Groups, Omar Khamissa and community work.
We are training students on campuses, but also banding together with local advocates to form independent groups to hold leaders accountable.
Across the country, with your support, we’ve been organizing meetings every day with our local Advocacy Groups. This is happening in just about every city across Canada. You are helping us push for change.
Hundreds upon hundreds of Canadian Muslims are being organized to urge policy makers to make concrete policy changes every week.
We need to grow this effort.
We want you to help set the agenda for change.
To include all community leaders in setting the upcoming advocacy agenda, NCCM has been hosting several Muslim leadership townhalls from coast to coast.
This week, it is Vancouver's turn to participate in setting the advocacy agenda for the upcoming year.
If you are a Muslim community leader in the larger Vancouver area, please contact us to attend this townhall, where we will work with you to set priorities for real change.
Sign up today and make sure to join us!
Join our Local Advocacy Groups and join us in pushing for change.
Join our Vancouver town hall.
Donate today to lead the way.
We need your help to urge policy makers for change - federally, provincially, and municipally.
There are those who think they can bury our hopes and our dreams.
But they do not know we are seeds.
Grow with us.
Wasalam,
Omar Khamissa
Chief Mobilization Officer
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NCCM | P.O. Box 77062 | Markham, ON L3P 0C8 CA
