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The debate surrounding a downtown Regina mosque’s outdoor call to prayer may be revealing more about Saskatchewan than the broadcast itself.
That’s the view of Amin Asfari, the Law Foundation of Saskatchewan chair in police studies in the Department of Criminology at the University of Regina, who says the controversy has become a flashpoint exposing broader social tensions rather than simply a disagreement over a two-minute call to prayer.
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Listen to Asfari on The Evan Bray Show:
“The incident itself isn’t so much about the call to prayer, but it reveals the existing kind of underbelly that’s operating in the region,” Asfari said during an appearance on The Evan Bray Show.
The Regina City Jamia Masjid began broadcasting the Islamic call to prayer before Friday services last week under a trial permit.
The move quickly sparked debate online and on local talk radio, drawing both support and criticism. Mosque leaders have also reported receiving threats, prompting Regina police to increase patrols around places of worship while investigating the incidents.
Asfari, whose research focuses on Muslim communities, Islamophobia and the criminal legal system, said the reaction fits a pattern seen elsewhere.
“If you look at Islamophobia, any scientific literature on Islamophobia, it often works through symbols,” he said. “Visible symbols tend to activate Islamophobia.”
He said those symbols can include hijabs, mosques, Islamic schools and, in this case, the call to prayer.
“It speaks to kind of the undertones that are operating in a particular region, and it’s not unique to Saskatchewan at all.”
Asfari said one reason the public reaction concerns him is that hate crimes are often preceded by increasingly hostile public discourse.
“Hate crimes generally don’t happen without being preceded by the vitriol and the animus and the racism that you’re seeing online,” he said.
“That has a tendency to foment a greater undercurrent of hate, and ultimately it goes from an online conversation to an offline conversation where violence might occur.”
While Asfari questioned whether broadcasting the call to prayer was the right decision at this point, he said his concern is less about the call itself than the social environment surrounding it.
He argued that Muslim institutions, many of which are still relatively young in Saskatchewan, should continue to build stronger relationships with the broader community.
“My concern is that institutionally, most of these institutions are still kind of in the cocoon stage,” he said. “They’re still insular, they don’t have a vision for integration.”
He pointed to community events, partnerships with Indigenous organizations, and greater civic engagement as examples of how Muslim institutions can continue to build trust and understanding.
At the same time, Asfari cautioned against responses that single out one faith.
“That kind of legislation is exclusionary,” he said while discussing proposals in other jurisdictions to ban public calls to prayer.
“It doesn’t affect all religious groups similarly, so think of church bells going off, for example. So targeting a specific group becomes problematic.”
Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski. (980 CJME files)
Regina mayor decries violence
Regina Mayor Chad Bachynski said regardless of where people stand on the issue threats are unacceptable.
“It’s concerning if there’s narrative of violence,” Bachynski said. “Obviously, I condemn any violence for anybody in our community, and I want to make sure that people are safe.”
Bachynski also noted the mosque followed the city’s existing bylaw and permit process before beginning the broadcasts.
Regina Police Chief Lorilee Davies has said officers are investigating the reported threats and have increased patrols around places of worship to help ensure people feel safe.
For Asfari, the current debate presents an opportunity to have broader conversations about community relationships before disagreements escalate into something more serious.
“I think the first step is to have conversations between the police that are genuine and those communities that they police,” he said, adding stronger relationships between communities can help reduce fear and misunderstanding.
— with files from 980 CJME’s Geoff Smith and Gillian Massie
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