Thank you.
One said, “Massive deportation now is the only answer”.
In a blatant example of Islamophobia, one commentator on Mr. Redekopp's post, referring to my hijab, said, “Who the phack is this thing with the table cloth on”.
Scarborough is a community where people from around the world have chosen to make their homes and build a better life for their families. Canadians from Bangladesh, from the Philippines, from Sri Lanka, from India, from Arab countries and, yes, from Pakistan, helped make Scarborough a great place to live. I am proud to raise my family there. They would be very upset by the anti-Scarborough comments that Mr. Redekopp has attracted as well.
Now, Mr. Chair, I am sure these are comments that all my colleagues across the way—some of whom I have enjoyed a productive and collegial working relationship with for several years—will want to distance themselves from. At least, I certainly hope so. However, we have seen too often that as we amp up our rhetoric, it can give unfortunate licence to hatred and vitriol that is making it more dangerous for all elected officials. I hope we can be cognizant of that in the future.
Thank you, Chair.