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CONCORDIA STUDENT UNION TO MARK THE 2ND ANNIVERSARY OF THE QUEBEC CITY MOSQUE MASSACRE WITH A CIRCLE OF PEACE


Montréal, January 28, 2019 - The Concordia Student Union (CSU) will hold an interfaith commemoration service to mark the second anniversary of the January 29 massacre at the Centre culturel islamique de Québec, during which students and religious leaders from Muslim, Jewish and Christian communities will light a candle for the victims and form a Circle of Peace to stand against hate crimes.

The service will start at 1.00 pm tomorrow, at the CSU Lounge on the 7th floor of the Hall Building (1455 De Maisonneuve West) with Mohawk Spiritual greetings by Vicky Boldo, Elder of Cree/Coast Salish/Métis heritage, Aboriginal Student Resource Centre.

Religious leaders participating in the event are Ellie Hummel, Chaplain & Coordinator of Multi-faith and Spirituality Center of Concordia; Imam Salam Elmenyawi and Rabbi Yisroel Bernath, Spiritual Director, Rohr Chabad NDG and Associate Chaplain, Concordia University. All four leaders will join with students from the Muslim Students Association and Hillel at Concordia to light a candle for each of the six men killed in the January 29, 2017 massacre, and to help form a Circle of Peace to start a movement of interfaith and cross-cultural solidarity on campus and beyond.

Akira de Carlos, co-chair of Black, Indigenous and People of Color and Janet Lumb, a local artist representing the Progressive Chinese of Quebec and the Chinese Family Service of Greater Montreal, will also deliver messages of solidarity. CRARR Executive Director Fo Niemi will speak on the need for a broad coalition against hate crime as well as racial and religious discrimination, as the Quebec Government is proceeding on legislation to ban religious symbols and clothing for teachers, among other public servants.

For the occasion, Gospel Singer Amanda Benn will deliver an a capella performance of Will The Circle Be Unbroken.

The commemoration service will be followed later during the day by the official launch of a series of activities to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Sir George Williams Affair, also known as the Computer Riot of 1969, as well as First Voices week, an Indigenous-led event that celebrates First peoples and communities at Concordia and within the larger community.