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MUSLIM COMMUNITY WELCOMES RCMP HIJAB POLICY
1-24-2017
Ten years after the Canadian Armed Forces had approved hijab as part of the uniform, last August the RCMP also announced that female Muslim Mountie can also wear hijab on the job. LT. Commander, Wafa Dabbagh, became the first Muslim woman to wear the hijab in the Canadian Forces. However, so far there are no takers for the job with the RCMP.
Whether it’s the Canadian Forces, or the RCMP, we must applaud and welcome such policies that reflect the broader and constantly changing multicultural realities of Canada. It was in 1990's when the Solicitor General, Pierre Cadieux, lifted the ban on turban, allowing Baltej Singh Dhillon to wear a turban, as an RCMP Officer, nearly 25 Sikhs RCMP officers are now serving with the RCMP while wearing turban.
Just six years after that policy change, Lt. Commander, Wafa Dabbagh became the first and so far the only Muslim woman to serve in the Canadian Armed Forces while wearing the hijab. May God have mercy upon her soul, she passed away in 2012, while battling cancer. She became an example for the Muslim women to serve the country while practicing an important aspect of their faith. In 2010, Dabbagh was awarded at Rideau Hall, by the Gov. Gen. David Johnston one of the first Operational Service Medals, and in May 2012, a month before she passed away, she had received a Diamond Jubilee Medal. Had it not been for her untimely death, she was slated to become the first Muslim Woman Commander of the Canadian Armed Forces Naval Unit.
Despite pioneering the cause for Muslim women wearing hijab in the Canadian Military, Lt. Cmdr Dabbagh shoes remain unfilled. This is despite the fact that she participated in Canadian Forces nationwide drive to recruit minorities, women, and Canadian Muslim youth to join the Canadian Armed Forces, only few have taken up the challenge.
In Canada, RCMP became the third police force, after Toronto and Edmonton to adopt hijab as part of the uniform for its officers. RCMP noted that, "currently has no members requesting to wear the hijab on duty." This initiative is clearly taken by the RCMP in order to attract Muslim women to its ranks. And it must be applauded.
RCMP Staff Sgt. Julie Gagnon, said the RCMP developed a hijab for applicants or serving female members of the Islamic faith, reflecting "the diversity of the RCMP's workforce." It underwent rigorous testing to ensure the design meets "the highest standards of officer safety."
In a statement to CBC, The National Council of Canadian Muslims applauded the policy change, calling it a "welcome one and a natural evolution for Canadian policing." The advocacy group said three types of headscarves were tested to select one that would not encumber officers and could be easily removed when required.
"While in 1990 there was initial reluctance to allow Sikh RCMP officers to wear the turban as part of their uniforms, Canadians have since embraced the change and we expect that this will be the same with the decision to allow the hijab, said the council's communications director Amira Elghawaby in a release.
"The Canadian Muslim population is growing and this decision will help reflect the richness and diversity of our country as well as open up career options for minorities."
RCMP, Toronto, or Edmonton Police Forces are certainly not the first ones in the world to adopt such policy. Police forces in U.K. Norway, Sweden, and in United States, seven cities, New York, Baltimore. Washington D.C., Charlotte, Memphis, Atlanta, and San Francisco have Muslim women serving their communities while wearing hijab on duty as part of their uniform.
If the latest results released by Stats Can are any indication, one can say that Canadian Multicultural Mosaic will undergo a transformational changes, not seen since 1871, at all levels, requiring more and more participation by ethnic minorities. The report estimates that, “over one-third of the working age population in 2036 would belong to a visible minority group.”
Most importantly, Muslim Canadians will be at the forefront of these transformational changes, demanding more participations, just to maintain current levels of services, by Muslims at all levels, whether it be politics, government, non-government, military and police forces.
The latest projection report released by StatsCan indicates that “nearly half of the country’s population will likely be immigrants or children of immigrants by 2036,” reported Globe and Mail.
The report estimates that by 2036 almost fifty percent of the Canadian population will be immigrant or children of immigrants. It also estimates that almost 20% of Canadians will be second generation Canadians, up from 17.5% in 2011.
According to StatsCan, the combined population, immigrants and second-generation Canadian combined “could be between 77% and 81.4%” and “more than half of immigrants in Canada would be of Asian origin in 2036.”
The report also estimates that “The proportion of people with a non-Christian religion would increase between now and 2036, accounting between 13% and 16% from current 9%.” The lion share of this population growth would be on the shoulders of Canadian Muslims which is estimated to increase “between 5.6% and 7.2% of the total population in 2036.” This in comparison to other leading minorities, “Hindu (between 2.5% and 2.9%) and Sikh (between 2.3% and 2.7%).”
Given the latest estimated population projection by StatsCan it is clear the need for Muslim Canadians to be involved in every aspect and facet of Canadian society would be a necessity. Especially, if government departments and security agencies want to maintain the current levels of service and security whether its Canadian Borders, Military, or Law Enforcement Agencies, such as the RCMP.
We applaud, the government, especially the Canadian Forces, RCMP, and other regional police forces, such as Toronto, and Edmonton to be at the forefront of these anticipate and much needed changes in their ability to recruit and attract quality people before it too late.
However, more important part is for the Canadian Muslim population, especially the youth to recognize the future need of the country and avail themselves to a very promising, and rewarding career opportunities and become the pioneers of this much needed and anticipated change within the Canadian society by utilizing the opportunity to serve this great country.
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