Members of a campaign called #MobileMuslims reached the legislature this weekend after a 40-day road trip across Canada focussed on peace and understanding.
The journey, with members of Ahmadiyya Muslim community, began July 13 in St. John’s, NL, before coming to its final two stops in Victoria and Vancouver.
The initial plan was to make 25 stops along the way but that number grew to 37, said spokesman Omer Ahmed.
“It’s just that a lot people in smaller towns asked us if we could stop.”
The tour marked the 50th anniversary of the Ahmadiyya Muslims in Canada, Ahmed said.
Other initiatives to mark the occasion have included collecting one million pounds of food across the country for people in need.
He said the tour involved a truck towing a trailer that had been transformed into a display centre. Reaction along the way was “overwhelmingly positive,” Ahmed said.
“People have been very, very welcoming and thankful that we’re doing it,” he said. “Many people come and say ‘Kudos to you for doing this, you guys are getting a bad rep in the media.’ ”
Ahmed said one of the things stressed on the tour is that not all Muslims have extremist views.
“We’re different than that group who’s hijacking our faith.”
The hope is to dispel whatever misconceptions people might have, Ahmed said.
“If it’s going to take us to go coast-to-coast and meet as many people as possible, we will.”
People have been intent on listening and having conversations with the members of the tour, he said.
“I haven’t noticed and anger from people or yelling from people,” he said. “It’s been very, very encouraging overall for us.”
