Q&A: Meet London's new Muslim Community Liaison Officer

As part of London's action plan to fight Islamophobia, the city created the position of a Muslim Community Liaison Advisor in 2022. Ahmer Khan assumed the role in December 2022 and will be formally introduced to a city committee on Thursday.

CBC London MorninghostRebecca Zandbergen met Khan in his first public interview, where he described the position and his plans.

The following has been edited for clarity.

RZ: Tell us why you wanted this job?

AK: It's never been done before No level of government has actually pushed out a response committed to fighting Islamophobia such as this one. And so there were many candidates whoapplied for the role, and I was lucky enough to be selected.

RZ: What will you be doing?

AK: The mandate is set in the action plan to combat and disrupt Islamophobia as per City Council. It's basically combating Islamophobia on a variety of levels: in education, health, and bylaw, creating youth fellowship to advise counsel, to celebrate Islamic art and history and making sure that the education piece is the most important piece where the future generations understand differences and support those differences.

RZ: I know you're new to London. But do you see examples of Islamophobia in your own life?

AK: Yep. Sometimes daily, sometimes weekly. It's much more provoked towardwomen who wear the hijab. My mother, she wears a niqab. We're at Costco, there's a child that yells -- we're in line and it's just about Halloween time, and the child yells at us and says, "monster," points at my mom. And so you can't really teach Islamophobia to this child in Costco in the lineup, but these are examples of "this is something foreign to me. I'm scared, what do I do?" And obviously, the mother was embarrassed.

There are more severe cases of Islamophobia across Canada, across Ontario, across London, and it's not just isolated to one municipality. You know what happened with the Afzaal family, with our London family, was a very tragic incident and we hope that it never happens again.

LISTEN |Ahmer Khan talks about being London's Muslim Community Liaison Advisor on CBC London Morning:

RZ: Have you met with members of London's Muslim community?

AK: Yes. I've been meeting with as many Muslim community organizers, members, individuals, and groups as possible. It's quite an extensive list. And the reason why I'm doing that is because the Muslim identity is on a spectrum. And so you can practice your faith in a variety of different ways. But to bring all those voices to the table and make sure they're heard, but also catch the nuances between each advocacy ask.

RZ: We've just had this tragic instance in Turkey and Syria right now. How do you take into account international circumstances that people here are dealing with?

AK: Not in my purview, but happy to comment. There's quite a bit of coordinated effort to send resources, not only just money and remittances but also health, healthcare, kits and supplies. The Prime Minister's office has allocated a number of funds for this specific disaster. The Turkish Prime Minister has declared a state of emergency, and then the local mosques across North America are working together to send resources to that disaster. I think there's the death toll at 16,000 and rising.

RZ: What is the first thing on your to-do list?

AK: The first and last piece is the education piece. Peel District School Board has passed an anti-Islamophobia strategy, the first of its kind across Canada. I know there's been some appetite for London to follow, Thames Valley District School Board I'm working with. London Catholic District School Board is another stakeholder I'm working with. And so what that looks like when it will be rolled out and, you know, hopefully sooner better than later.