Mahmoud Mourra, the organizer of Muslim-led protests against LBGT indoctrination in schools began organizing rallies in Calgary after a Muslim student in Edmonton was berated as unCanadian for opting out of a pride event which went against their deeply held religious convictions. Mourra, as he affirmed at the first of a series of protests in Calgary insisting that school should be about academics, not ideological indoctrination, was adamant that these protests have nothing to do with anti-LBGT sentiment as many have alleged, but rather that they simply want their children safeguarded from inappropriate content that does not align with their values. Ultimately, the frequent chants of, “let kids be kids”, that break out at these events are a call for the depoliticization of schools, particularly for young children.
Unsurprisingly, these Muslim-led gatherings have been met with significant opposition from the rainbow brigade, as we witnessed during the second protest which took place outside city hall and with many vitriolic messages on social media painting the group as bigoted and even as white supremacists (despite the organizers not being white).
In addition, a troubling audio recording has emerged in which, according to Mourra, a Calgary Police officer named Matt Messenger is addressing a criminal harassment charge brought against Mourra resulting from a Facebook argument with another Muslim. In the clip, which Mourra acknowledges is a brief excerpt from an extensive conversation, despite there being no direct correlation between the charges and the protests, the officer discusses the gatherings at length and alleges that some freedom groups in Calgary who have seemingly co-opted the events are white supremacists who hate Muslims and are just using his cause to attack LGBT groups. The emphasis on discussing protests and the seemingly arbitrary legal restrictions extending from these charges that prevent Mourra from attending LGBT-organized protests have him believing that these charges are nothing more than an attempt at political silencing.
We reached out to the Calgary Police Service for comment and they provided the following response:
The audio in this video was taken from a much longer conversation between MOURRA and a member of the CPS. It is a mischaracterization of the intent and content of the conversation. Both the officer speaking and the CPS recognizes that not all members of the freedom groups are white supremacists. These excerpts were taken from a conversation on how we can find solutions for communities to come together and decrease the anger and hostility we have seen in recent weeks at community events. We maintain that we police behaviours and not beliefs, and we continue to work to bring peaceful solutions for both the right to protest and the right to feel safe in our city.
Mahmoud Mourra joined me to set the record straight on the intended message behind these events, to discuss the troubling recording of his conversation with Calgary Police and their charged accusations about some freedoms groups in the city, and to clarify the nature of the charges he is facing and how they are in no way connected to the protests he runs in Calgary.
For more coverage of the community-led efforts to eject radical progressive indoctrination from schools, be sure to check in regularly at StopClassroomGrooming.com.
