Feces were left in multiple parts of the University of Victoria’s Multifaith Centre on Wednesday in an incident a national Muslim group is calling an act of hate against Muslims.
Oak Bay police said an unknown person or persons defecated or deposited feces inside the centre between the hours of 6 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
The feces were spread across multiple parts of the building, including the meditation room and a bathroom, police said in a statement Friday.
Shawn Ullah, B.C. representative for the National Council of Canadian Muslims, said his organization is treating the incident as an act of hate, as feces were found inside a wudhu foot bath used by Muslims before communal prayers.
Incidents like these have a “deep, deep effect on Muslim students and staff at UVic and causes a lot of fear and distress,” he said. “No person should ever feel intimidated or unsafe at their educational institution, so it’s very concerning and disappointing to see this happen.”
UVic said it will increase security on campus, particularly around Friday prayer time, and is in ongoing conversations with the National Council of Canadian Muslims as how to prevent similar incidents from happening again, Ullah said.
On July 5, Friday Muslim prayers at the University of Victoria’s Multifaith Centre were cancelled by campus security after two notes containing anti-Muslim, as well as anti-Iran and anti-Palestine messages, were discovered on the doors of the building earlier that morning.
The notes were reviewed by a hate-crimes investigator and forwarded to the RCMP hate-crime unit for further analysis, according to Oak Bay police.
There was no clear indication of who was targeted in the most recent incident, police said.
In a statement posted on UVic’s website Thursday, university president Kevin Hall condemned the act and said the university is working with police to identify those responsible.
Hall said he has been meeting with members of the Muslim community “to engage in conversations about creating a campus free of anti-Muslim, anti-Palestinian and anti-Iranian hate.”
“We are deeply appreciative of everyone’s willingness to enter into these challenging discussions with us,” he said.
Nicole Greengoe, UVic’s executive director of wellness, recreation and athletics, said the university has been working with UVic Muslim community members as well as provincial and national Muslim associations on a safety plan so events at the centre can continue.
“Campus Security will continue to work with our policing partners and increased security measures are now in place at Multifaith so members of all faiths can continue to come to the centre to worship and to participate in activities and programs,” she said in a statement to the Times Colonist.
Oak Bay deputy chief Kris Rice said police are committed to finding those responsible for the vandalism.
“These incidents are deeply troubling and go against the values of respect and inclusively that our community upholds,” he said in a statement.
Oak Bay Mayor Kevin Murdoch said while he couldn’t comment on the specifics of the incident due to the police investigation, “I think we have have to speak up pretty loudly that it’s totally unacceptable.”
Anyone with information about the incidents is encouraged to contact Oak Bay police at 250-592-2424.
UVic spokesperson Kirsten Lauvaas said the Multifaith Centre remains open and Muslim prayers would go ahead as planned on Friday.
Upwards of 100 people regularly attend Friday prayers at the centre, including university students, staff, faculty and nearby high school students when school is in session.
