Asma'a Bagajati and Dora Chams will be hosting two virtual sessions
By Rebecca Zandbergen
(CBC) As Londoners continue to deal with the emotional aftermath of last month’s fatal attack on the Afzaal family, the Thames Valley District School Board is hosting two virtual support groups for Muslim students this summer with the help of experienced Muslim staff.
Oakridge Secondary School special education teacher Asma’a Bagajati and Ashley Oaks Public School English language learner teacher Dora Chams will facilitate the sessions, along with a social worker who will help them navigate the difficult conversations.
“We hope to provide a safe and welcoming environment for students just to voice their concerns or just to breathe a sigh of relief that somebody’s here for me, somebody is listening to me, that they are seen and heard,” said Chams.
Both Chams and Bagajati volunteered to assist with the virtual sessions.
“There have been many hate-motivated incidents recently following the tragedy,” said Bagajati. “I feel like I need to support the students who do identify the same way I do.”
“A lot of our Muslim teachers are feeling the same feelings as their students. We’re not there telling them how they feel or telling them how they should act, but rather just hearing,” she said.
It’s all been pretty unsettling, said Chams, who worries Muslim students have a harder time tapping into their support networks during the summer months. “We identify with these students and I see myself in them and they see themselves in me.”
