Yves Francoeur, the president of the police union in Montreal, has gotten himself in trouble for publicly pointing out certain facts about mosques and Muslims that everyone knows, but no one is allowed to talk about.

The following news video from Quebec discusses the controversy over Mr. Francoeur’s statements. Vlad points out:

The last person interviewed in this video, a certain Amir Khadir, is well worth independent research. Check YouTube for him and some of the protests he led against his own constituent, a shoe store in Montreal where he led regular marches against the owner because he sells a brand of Israeli shoes among other things.

Many thanks to C.B. Sashenka for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

The accompanying article, also translated by C.B. Sashenka:

The Canadian Muslim Forum demands an apology from Yves Francoeur MONTREAL – The Canadian Muslim Forum demands an apology from the President of the Montreal Police Brotherhood, Yves Francoeur, after the remarks he made earlier in the week. Last Monday Mr. Francoeur said that the presence of mosques in an area means the increased presence of extremists. He also said that the “multicultural character” in Montreal was one of the reasons that made him believe that Montreal Police Service officers could “be the target of attacks.” Faced with such an outcry to his remarks, Yves Francoeur made his position clear by saying that the multicultural character of Montreal was not a problem in itself, but an important aspect of reality that must be considered. This explanation is, however, not sufficient for the Canadian Muslim Forum. “We ask Mr. Francoeur to apologize because he does not speak for himself. He’s a union representative. What he does, what he says, affects my community. Clarifying what he means is not enough,” reported Jebbari Samah of the Forum. The president of the Montreal Police Brotherhood did not react to this new demand. He said a few days ago that his remarks had been interpreted simplistically.

Video transcript:

00:00 A man of the Muslim community demands an apology from the Montreal Police Brotherhood 00:04 after its president, Yves Francoeur, associated the presence of 00:08 mosques on Montreal territory with an increased number of extremists. 00:12 Do I have the air of… of a terrorist? 00:16 The Muslims whom we met on Friday say they are tired of having the finger pointed at them 00:20 Some are asking for an apology. But it was troubling. Furthermore, 00:24 it is Islamophobic; it is something that has a bad effect, 00:28 that is not in harmony within society as a whole. 00:32 How many of these people who are committing these attacks, they represent how many out of all Muslims? 00:36 Perhaps 0.0001 percent? 00:40 No, it’s a very, very, very weak minority. 00:44 In the interviews by the media on Monday 00:48 and in the aftermath of the attacks in St. Jean and Ottawa, 00:50 Yves Francoeur said he is very concerned about multiculturalism in Montreal. 00:54 “When there are mosques on your territory, unfortunately there will be more extremist people,” he said. 01:00 I’m not against what he is saying, he has to do everything he can to protect his territory. 01:06 It’s normal and it’s legitimate, but before he must equip himself with information. 01:12 I know, everyone equips themselves with information. He must infiltrate people into each mosque, 01:16 he has to go to every mosque, and then he can conclude that, OK, that mosque is sketchy, and the other, it’s good, 01:22 we’ll keep it, and the other one we’ll follow, it’s like that. 01:25 Other Muslims whom we spoke to prefer not to speak on camera, being afraid 01:28 to add fuel to the fire. Social networks have indeed become ignited after Francoeur’s statements, 01:34 starting with Mayor Denis Coderre. The police union expressed the position of the president 01:40 by writing this in a statement: 01:43 “The multicultural character is not a problem in itself, but an important and unavoidable aspect of Montreal’s municipal reality.” 01:49 For Amir Khadir, it is not enough. I think that in this case Mr. Francoeur 01:53 needs (to give) more than an explanation; Mr. Francoeur has to make an apology. 01:57 And now, is Yves Francoeur going to apologize? 02:00 His publicist says there will be no further comments.



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