Crombie pressed at mosque, 'You with the Muslims or the Israelis?'
Author of the article:Joe Warmington
Published Nov 20, 2023 • Last updated 23 hours ago • 4 minute read
Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie was bullied, intimidated and humiliated by men and women inside a Hamilton mosque.
Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie is pictured in a Hamilton mosque. The image was posted to X at @RE_MarketWatch ()
It was the rudest treatment of a female Ontario political leader inside a mosque since then-premier Kathleen Wynne was asked in 2017 to sit at the back while men prayed.
That indignity was inflicted on an Ontario premier a downtown Toronto mosque.
The latest degrading treatment of a prominent female political leader was at a mosque in Hamilton, directed towards Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie. As the perceived front-runner in the Ontario Liberal Party’s leadership campaign, she could next month become the Grit’s leader, and perhaps, the province’s premier some day.
But videos show none of that helped Crombie during a heated exchange in which she was bullied, intimidated and humiliated by men and women. Inside the mosque — where Crombie wore a head covering — the politician was called on in one of the videos posted to social media to “condemn the killing of innocent babies.”
In a video, entitled, “Hamilton Muslims calling out Mayor Bonnie Crombie for not calling for a ceasefire,” people were asking her “will you make one tweet? It takes 10 seconds.”
A man on the floor wearing Palestinian colours held up a cellphone with a picture and asked Crombie, “are you with the Muslims or the Israelis” since “this is a picture of you at the Israeli lobby conference?”
Another question posed was, “will you condemn Israel … yes or no?”
A woman’s voice can be heard yelling, “don’t talk down to us anymore,” and there was a warning that Crombie “will not get the Muslim vote.”
While she maintained her composure, Crombie appeared understandably rattled, if not scared, at the ugly and unfair scene.
“I will be putting a statement up as you ask, you have heard it,” she said, adding it would ask “for permanent peace and the killing to stop.”
Crombie’s campaign sent the following statement.
“Last evening (Sunday) Bonnie Crombie was invited by members of the Muslim community in Hamilton to attend a meeting at the Hamilton Mountain Mosque and listen. That is exactly what she did. Bonnie is grateful for the invitation and for the opportunity to hear firsthand the concerns of the community during this extremely difficult time.”
Ontario Liberal voters would be right to ask who the real Bonnie Crombie is.
She also sent the “statement that she read at the meeting,” which said, “I would like to appeal for all killing to stop and for hostages to be released, for the war to end, and for peace efforts to resume.
“My prayers are not just for the Middle East but also for all of us at home.” Crombie added she urged people to “learn from each other so that we can build a better and stronger Ontario – one that embraces everyone – no matter a person’s culture or faith.”
It was not enough for some.
On X, former Toronto mayoral candidate Bahira Abdulsalam, who organized Ontario’s million-person march for children to fight gender ideology in schools, said, “how dare she go again to a masjid after all the hate she is inciting against Muslims? I would never let her in. Proud of our brothers and sisters who gave her a good lesson.”
Of course, Crombie has never incited hate against Muslims or any community. She has always been respectful, adhering, accommodating and, like many politicians — including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — sometimes even pandering to people.
Crombie made an appearance at this same mosque in August with no incident and did not deserve to be treated like this.
But Abdulsalam, who supported a female Durham College student’s video praising Hamas Oct. 7 attack, was not finished.
On X, she added, “I believe (Crombie) should be only targeting LGBTQ votes. I can remember, though, the public statement Bonnie Crombie made about Haya day when we gathered to celebrate our pride about modesty and she sided with the LGBTQ community as if they are the only community worthy of celebrating pride, insulting the Muslim community who voted her to be a mayor of Mississauga.”
Abdulsalam continued, “now she is coming again and she had the audacity to wear the Islamic veil and go to our prayer place to demand the Muslim vote. Shame on all politicians who believe they are going to continue deceiving people and ignoring their voices except for getting in power.”
This belittling style is similar to what Prime Minister Justin Trudeau faced last month at a mosque in Rexdale, where people yelled, “how many more Palestinian children need to be slaughtered” before you call for a ceasefire,” and, “condemn Israel?”
The combative approach appears to have enjoyed success since Trudeau later asked Israel to show “restraint” — just as Crombie called for the “killing” to stop — when it was Hamas’ slaughter of 1,200 people and the kidnapping of some 240 hostages that sparked the bloodshed in Gaza.
The strategy of demanding that Canada’s elected leaders bow down to those who support anti-Semitic genocide and terror seems to work.
And the more this disrespect works, the more our political leaders will face it.
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Mississauga Mayor Bonnie Crombie was bullied, intimidated and humiliated by men and women inside a Hamilton mosque.
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