Good News from Council

I try to attend, or at least watch live, all Kitchener Council meetings (I proudly wear my Council Nerd title!) and this past Monday was no different. Now, if you follow me on Twitter at all, you'll know there was definitely some frustrating things regarding cycling projects that occured at that meeting. But fortunately there was also some pretty great stuff too. And since this is the #365ofgoodWR project, let's focus on the latter.

Councillor Johnston put forth a motion to reaffirm the city's commitment to religious freedoms for all faiths and denounced Quebec's Bill 21 legislation. Councillor Galloway-Sealock made a slight amendment to that motion that ensured the decision would be shared with the government of Quebec. This passed unanimously. There were several delegations that spoke to the need for municipalities and elected officials to set the tone of wholeheartedly welcoming newcomers to our city. Several women involved with the Coalition of Muslim Women (who I have highlighted previously), including Fauzia Mazhar, spoke and there was a very passionate speech from Meena Waseem. Immigration Partnership of Waterloo Region also shared an informative presentation on the value and importance of welcoming immigrants to our community. It felt like an evening of important and necessary discussion and I'm thrilled that the motion passed with overwhelming support from all councillors.

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