Islamophobia in Quebec: Its Origin & Timeline

Islamophobia will long be remembered as one of the most traumatic chapters in the history of Muslims worldwide. However, history will also remember a group of people who thrived amidst this fear: politicians. Imagine not having to inform your constituents of your party’s priorities in education, healthcare, employment, and affordability. Instead, you wield the most potent weapon of all: fear!

Fear of the “other.” What is more effective in the current environment than the century-old fear of communists? The fear of Muslims, along with nearly every aspect of their culture—clothing, worship, traditions, rituals, and even the perception of their countries—has become a tool for political gain. The anticipated “return on investment“? A belief that no problem in people’s lives, however unsettling, could be as significant as the perceived threat of Muslims.

Take, for example, Trump and his cabinet, whose most recurrent talking point on TV over the last 24 hours references America’s war on Iran and its impact on the US economy: “It’s short-term pain for long-term gain. A destroyed Iran will be good for us!” There was no mention of how this fantasy destruction of Iran will help Americans afford food, but don’t expect an answer; none is forthcoming.

No doubt, Islamophobia has become a convenient gift for politicians worldwide, from Modi in India and the Buddhist junta in Burma to Trump in America and nearly every right-wing politician in Western nations. “Keeping you safe from the Muslims” has become a frequently heard promise at election rallies in various regions. The most visible manifestation of this is the attack on Muslim symbols.

Consider Quebec’s Premier François Legault’s fiery pledge to “defend” Quebecers from “radical Islamists” by banning prayer in public.

“Defend against radical Islamists?” Recall Alexandre George-Henri Bissonnette, who shot and killed six Muslims worshiping peacefully inside a Quebec Mosque in 2017; he was not a Muslim. Moreover, the aftermath of this horrific act was even more troubling. Bissonnette was never charged under the terrorism provisions of the Criminal Code. He confessed to his crime like a true holy warrior and was sentenced to 40 years in prison. However, because he wasn’t a ‘radical Muslim’ but simply a radical Muslim-hater, Quebec’s Court of Appeal deemed 40 years an “unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment,” reducing his sentence to 25 years.

The excuse given for the killer’s murderous spree was that he was criminally insane. There was no mention of his obsessive pro-Israel stance or his admiration for commentators like Ben Shapiro (he visited Shapiro’s X account 93 times in 30 days before the shooting), Laura Ingraham, and Tommy Robinson.

So, what underlies this vitriol and hostility? Most Muslims would be hard-pressed to find an answer. Thus, clarifying this hatred, if at all possible, is crucial. Let’s take a look at the past 20 years in Quebec, its sudden embrace of ‘secular‘ ideals, and its inexplicable animosity towards Islam and Muslims.

1940s-1950s: This era was characterized by the Catholic Church’s dominance in Quebec. It controlled schools and hospitals and heavily influenced politics, dictating moral standards in the daily lives of Quebecers.

1960: In the ’60s, Quebecers grew tired of the Church’s influence. They rallied against its involvement in their lives, sparking the movement known as the Quiet Revolution. “Nobody wants the Catholic Church telling us what to do, who to marry, and how many kids to have,” expressed the people.

1970s-2000s: During these decades, the primary focus in Quebec shifted from secularism to debates over independence, which dominated the public discourse. As this topic grew stale, politicians needed a new way to engage the populace. The opportunity arrived in 2001 with the infamous events of 9/11.

Quebec politicians quickly recognized that the level of religiosity displayed by the bombers could be juxtaposed against the “crimes” of the Catholic Church in Quebec to stir public sentiment. And it worked. By reminding people of the oppressive chapter of church control they had endured and redirecting that hostility towards Islam and Muslims, a successful formula emerged. This strategy exploited “Quebecers’ belief that the state and church need to be separate,” noted Sébastien Dallaire of Léger Marketing.

In the years following 9/11, Quebec’s media began sensationalizing what they termed the “reasonable accommodation crisis,” referring to the concessions made by the government towards minority religious groups. Allowing public spaces for prayer or permitting the hijab fell into this category. Many Quebecers viewed these accommodations as ‘pandering‘ to Muslims, and political parties exploited this sentiment. “They lived through it with the Catholic Church and decided that they did not want it imposed on them by any other religious groups,” was the rationale provided.

In 2007, the town of Hérouxville made headlines worldwide when it adopted a controversial “code of conduct” for its entirely non-existent immigrant population, which included a bizarre “ban” on stoning women. While this seems ridiculous, it sheds light on how political parties operate: they seize on a cause—any cause—and, if none exists, they create one through lies and propaganda. This tactic has been perfected to an art form by Israel.

In 2013, a minority Parti Québécois (PQ) government proposed the notorious “Charter of Quebec Values,” which aimed to ban religious symbols for public servants. However, this initiative failed after the PQ lost the 2014 election.

In 2019, the reigning Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) government revived a watered-down version of the charter of values, which ultimately became Bill 21, Quebec’s current secularism law. To protect Bill 21 from legal challenges, the CAQ introduced the “notwithstanding clause” in 2025.

The impact of both bills was almost immediate. A survey conducted by the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM) revealed that 73% of the Muslim women surveyed wanted to leave Quebec for work-related reasons. Additionally, 54% reported experiencing racist comments from colleagues since Bill 21 became law, while 49% encountered microaggressions in the workplace.

One such individual affected by these policies is Sr. Ghada Mohamed, a Hijabi Quebecer with a background in psychology who wished to teach. However, she had to withdraw from applying for a teaching position due to Bill 21.

“There was an open position that required teaching some subjects in psychology. I fulfilled most of the criteria. But at the end of the job description, there was a line stating, ‘Due to the current law, if you’re wearing any religious symbols, you cannot apply.’ So, I chose not to apply.”

For regular Quebecers who do not subscribe to extremist views, the persistent push for secularism is driven more by political calculation than by a genuine desire to protect Quebec’s values. “They don’t understand what secularism truly means. For politicians, it’s a ‘wedge issue‘ that puts their opponents on the defensive by blaming them for siding with ‘the others.’ This can spell the end of a political campaign for any Quebec politician.”

Stephen Brown, president of the NCCM, echoes this sentiment: “The motivation for Bill 21 was never about achieving societal compromise. The goal has always been to garner votes.”

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