Toronto

At a moment of deep polarization, we must stand up to hate and champion the inclusive values
that ensure everyone can belong and feel safe in Toronto. We have already brought Toronto
Police Service together with community leaders, to find practical ways to protect places of
worship, including mosques, and all who worship in them.
I will ensure the Muslim community has every opportunity to work alongside the Toronto Police
Service to build meaningful trust, with a direct line to police leadership before, during and after a
crisis. Under my leadership, and specifically through my budget investments, the Toronto Police
Service (TPS) have increased the number of officers in the Hate Crimes Unit from 6 to 32 staff.
Fostering strong relationships between faith leaders and this unit is essential work to ensure
everyone feels safe in their community. Further, by investing in a multi-year hiring plan that will
grow the number of frontline officers over 5 years, Toronto Police Service has expanded the
Neighbourhood Community Officer program to more than a dozen new neighbourhoods.
Neighbourhood Community Officers focus on building relationships to strengthen the bonds
between police and communities, which allows for a proactive approach to solving issues that
arise in partnership with faith communities, schools, businesses, and others.

Muslim institutions have taken on significant costs to keep their community members safe. To
help alleviate this growing financial burden, we created the hostile vehicle mitigation grants
program – a new stream of funding for faith organizations to pay for barriers and other safety
infrastructure to help protect their institutions from attacks using vehicles. As Mayor, I will
expand this grant program and seek to leverage federal and provincial programs to help cover
the costs of broader building security upgrades.
The City will work with mosques and Islamic schools on security assessments, emergency plans
and clear contacts with police and emergency services. No family should have to wonder who is
watching when they walk to prayer or drop their children at school.

Islamophobia has no place in our city. The Toronto Public Service must uphold high standards of
conduct for all employees including the explicit commitment to uphold Toronto’s motto –
Diversity our Strength. The City has formalized its recognition of the Muslim Staff Network, one
of the City’s communities of inclusion created to enhance the values of the Toronto Public
Service as they relate to Muslim staff, including promoting workplace equity and inclusion,
educating others and fostering awareness of Muslim culture and religious practice and ways to
combat Islamophobia.

The City plays an important role in combatting all forms of hate, including through the Toronto
For All campaign which confronts islamophobia and shares resources.
I will never waiver on my commitment to the safety of all Torontonians. The City will continue to
invest in keeping communities safe and strong and will take action until every Torontonian can
practice their faith without fear.

A city works best when the people affected by its decisions help shape them. As Mayor, I
established strong relationships and met regularly with leaders in the Muslim community and will
continue to do so. I will continue to work closely with Muslim communities to ensure major
events and dates of significance can be celebrated as the community chooses, whether it is in
City-owned spaces or supporting events in private locations to address issues like parking or
traffic control. Muslim organizations will be partners in designing our anti-Islamophobia work, not
consulted after decisions are made. I will strengthen the Diverse Youth Fellowship, expanding
cohorts and bringing in young Muslim Torontonians into the halls of City governance.

I have worked closely with Muslim organizations like Sakeenah Canada and countless others
that support vulnerable people in our communities. I speak with them regularly, and I have heard
directly about the gaps in funding they face. I will keep working alongside these organizations to
close those gaps and make sure they have the resources to keep serving the community.
Muslim organizations are on the front lines helping families cope with the cost of living, and the
best way to support them is to make life more affordable for the people they serve. I froze transit
fares for 3 straight years and, if re-elected, I will reduce the cost of TTC: after 10 TTC rides in a
week, every ride for the rest of the week is free, Further, every child in every school now has
access to food, saving parents hundreds of dollars per child each year. This election, I
committed to expanding to include lunch with support from the federal and provincial
government. That would save families $1,800 on their groceries per child. We are also building
thousands of new affordable homes and going after bad landlords who let buildings fall apart or
push tenants out.

Places of worship do not all operate the same way, and our zoning rules should reflect how
communities actually use their spaces, including Friday prayers, Ramadan and community

programming. Based on a motion I brought forward this year, City Planning is reviewing how
current rules affect mosques and other faith spaces. Communities building or expanding a place
of worship should get clear guidance and a fair, timely process. I have also supported
communities like the International Muslims Organization mosque that want to redevelop their
place of worship to renew their facilities and add the affordable or seniors housing their
community needs.

Across Toronto, the greatest challenge is affordability: families are struggling with rent, transit
and groceries. When I arrived at City Hall, no affordable housing was being built, and today
thousands of new affordable homes are under construction. We have made transit more
affordable, and every child in every school now has access to food. We have built the
foundation, and I want to finish what we started.