The rise of anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian racism is playing out in Ontario schools, widely influenced by broader geopolitical and social issues.

Although , schools are  .

While we acknowledge that  and intersect to produce racial discrimination and violence, such as surveillance and censorship.

We recently engaged in  with people who are studying and practising to become teachers (pre-service teachers). We were interested in how prepared they are to challenge anti-Muslim bias and anti-Palestinian racism in Ontario schools.

We did this through interviews with 32 teacher candidates across Ontario. We focused on pre-service teacher perspectives so we could gauge current issues and gaps in teacher education programs.

The findings of our study, which documented gendered Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism in Ontario schools, points to the need for systemic changes in the province’s schools to better reflect the cultural and religious diversity in these spaces.

Read the full story in T.

Article co-authored by Faculty of Education Assistant Professor

The post The Conversation: People studying to become teachers speak about Islamophobia and anti‑Palestinian racism in Ontario schools appeared first on Faculty of Education.

The inspiration for this article was born of frustration and heartache. It follows the murders of four intergenerational members of the Afzaal/Salman family that left a nine-year-old child injured and orphaned in London, Ont., on June 6, 2021.

It also follows ongoing injustice related to state-sanctioned racism of Bill 21 in Québec and a rash of hate attacks in Alberta, most of them targeting Black Muslim women in hijab. This year at least nine attacks in Edmonton were reported to police, seven of which resulted in criminal charges.

There is ongoing silence and erasure when it comes to anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia in the education systems we and our loved ones inhabit. Although there is no one static understanding or definition of Islamophobia, we recognize it as a form of racism, structural and individual, that is rooted in long histories of empire and colonization.

We should examine multiple dimensions of Islamophobia that build and shape the realities of Muslim people through policy, social and economic structures and public representations across institutions and around the world. These manifestations shape the representations of Muslims and their embodied experience of “Muslimness” in Canada. It’s important to consider Islamophobia not only in daily hate crimes but also in daily indignities, silencing and injuries to Muslims’ sense of self and well-being.

Read the full article co-authored by �첥��Ƶ Faculty of Education Ph.D. candidate Nada Aoudeh on .

The post The Conversation Canada - Schools need to step up to address Islamophobia appeared first on Faculty of Education.