Muslim women have 3 strikes against them when trying to find jobs, local advocate says

As a Muslim woman, Fauzia Mazhar says she has three strikes against her as she walks into a job interview.

"I start from three levels lower than anybody else. I'm a woman, my gender is the first strike against me. And then I'm a visible minority woman, I am a person of colour and then the third is my religion, which is visible," Mazhar said.

"So with equal qualifications, equal experience and everything, I still have lesser chances to gain meaningful employment."

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Mazhar is a member of the Coalition of Muslim Women of Kitchener Waterloo and on Monday evening, she attended the province's anti-racism directorate meeting at Kitchener City Hall.

The meeting touched on a number of issues, including Islamophobia targeted at Muslim women in the region.

"Chronic unemployment and underemployment" of Muslim women is a big issue, Mazhar said.

"I think this is where Muslim women are definitely hit hardest, they find it very difficult to find jobs," she said.

Subtle racism never reported

The province is holding nine community meetings across the province to discuss systemic racism and how to eliminate barriers for Indigenous and racialized communities.

Waterloo region was initially not on the list of communities, but was added after local politicians pushed to be added. That came after a number of high-profile cases of racism.

In September the MPP for Kitchener-Waterloo, Catherine Fife, said she had heard of multiple cases "where culture and race have been used to not grant jobs and I heard that loud and clear from this community."

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But the racism goes beyond the job front, Mazhar said. There are many cases of subtle racism that are never reported to authorities, but are discussed with peers.

"Women spat at, hijabs pulled, also, a lot of times on the roads … somebody driving the car really aggressively towards them and then stopping it at the last minute," she said. Three different people told her about that last example.

It's easy to target Muslim women because, in part, people know who they are based on what they're wearing.

But it's also because they're women, Mazhar said.

"For example, if you want to say something to a six-foot-tall man, you might want to think twice before you say something, but if you say something to a woman who looks… [like] a newcomer, may not be able to speak English and then the gender comes into play, it's easier to say something or do something and then … just walk away without fear of any retaliation or any consequences," she said.

Race-based data important

Collecting data about racist incidents is an important step, Mazhar said.

While some people may fear how the data would be used, she said the numbers could reveal some surprising results.

I think this is where Muslim women are definitely hit hardest, they find it very difficult to find jobs.- Fauzia Mazher, member of the Coalition of Muslim Women of Kitchener Waterloo

She referred to recent report on police stops in Ottawa, where Middle Eastern and black drivers were more likely to be stopped by police than others.

The evidence racism is happening is needed in order to take steps to stop it, she said.

"Personally, when it does happen to me, the moment is shocking. It's really difficult to say or do anything in the moment. The best you can do is look at the person's face if you can. And there is this complete disbelief and everything you can think about - the heart is racing, your tongue is dried and you don't know what to do," she said. "This is a huge problem."