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Rabat – France will witness a national march on May 11, with anti-racism activists, public figures, and collective leaders rallying against the rise in Islamophobic attacks across the European country. The demonstration will begin at 2 p.m. local time in the Paris neighborhood of Bastille.
The march comes following the heinous Islamophobic attack a perpetrator identified as Olivier A. carried out against a Muslim man inside the mosque.
Olivier A. repeatedly stabbed 22-year-old Aboubakar Cisse around 40 to 50 times while he was praying, all while hurling insults at God, Islam, and Muslims as he filmed his horrific crime.
Converging reports say that the march organizers are determined to continue to rally against racism and Islamophobia.
“The person who kills is responsible, but someone who commits a racist crime always does so in a climate that enables it,” the organizers said in their statement on the upcoming demonstration.
According to Beur FM, organizers are also frustrated over the silence of political leaders over the continuous Islamophobic attacks and the increasing exclusion of Muslims from French public life.
Many other groups and collectives are supporting the march, including the Collective Against Islamophobia in Europe, the Aama Committee, March for Solidarity, Undocumented Committee 75, and Urgence Palestine.
“Over 100 public figures have pledged their support – among them writer Annie Ernaux, actress Adele Haenel, comedian Waly Dia, academic Francois Verges, and artists Lmohtep and Booder,” the news outlet wrote.
The rise in Islamophobic attacks is causing division among the French government, with only a few officials acknowledging that what happened to Cisse was an anti-Muslim hate crime.
One of them was French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, who earlier this month stressed his earlier remarks, describing Cisse’s murder as an Islamophobic attack.
After he faced criticism over his remarks, Bayrou said in an interview with Le Journal du Dimanche earlier this month: “Yes, I stand by it. I can see there’s a lot of debate. And to be honest, I often don’t understand some of these controversies.”
He added that he witnessed several instances when people refuse to use a word because “one doesn’t want to face reality.”
“The facts are clear: A 22-year-old man was murdered in a mosque while he was praying. His attacker filed the killing while hurling insults against Allah. So I ask: If this isn’t hatred directed at Islam, then what is it?” he said.
