PRESS RELEASE: Removal of Jewish Passenger for Praying Shows Rise in Intolerance on the Back of Islamophobia 08 September 2006 IHRC is deeply concerned at the removal of a Jewish passenger from an Air Canada Jazz flight for praying. ----------------------------------------------------- Islamic Human Rights Commission ----------------------------------------------------- 08 September 2006 PRESS RELEASE: Removal of Jewish Passenger for Praying Shows Rise in Intolerance on the Back of Islamophobia The Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) is deeply concerned at the removal of a Jewish passenger from an Air Canada Jazz flight for praying. The man, a Hassidic Jew, was removed after passengers complained to a flight attendant that his praying was making them nervous. IHRC is also very worried about a statement allegedly made by the flight attendant who removed the passenger. According to a witness to the incident, she told the passenger that she recognized that he wasn’t a Muslim but apologized that they had to take this action. Such as statement implies that had the passenger been a Muslim, there would have been no need to apologise. IHRC Chair Massoud Shadjareh stated: “One of the hidden dangers of Muslim profiling and other aspects of institutional Islamophobia is that it creates an atmosphere in which other forms of intolerance and anti-religious hostility is legitimised.” According to newspaper reports, Air Canada Jazz spokesperson Manon Stewart said that the crew had to act in the interest of the majority of the passengers. IHRC believes that this was the very attitude which created the atmosphere that allowed genocide to take place in Nazi Germany, Rwanda and the Balkans. For more information please contact (+44) 20 8904 4222, or (44) 7958 522196 email:info@ihrc.org [ ENDS ] Islamic Human Rights Commission PO Box 598 Wembley HA9 7XH United Kingdom Telephone (+44) 20 8904 4222 Fax (+44) 20 8904 5183 Email: info@ihrc.org Web: www.ihrc.org Recommend this article to a friend Your name: Your friend's email address: