Concordia University to meet with Muslim Students' Association over books

The administration at Montreal's Concordia University is planning to meet with the Muslim Students' Association concerning books available in its library.

This comes after the French-language TVA network reported the association had books by Muslim authors with radical and controversial views.

Ibrahim Abou Arab, vice-president external for the Muslim Students' Association, told Daybreak Montreal his organization was unfairly portrayed in the report.

Abou Arab said his organization received a surprise visit from TVA and wasn't approached for comment through regular channels, such as a phone call or email.

But Abou Arab said his organization would look more closely at its books, which, according to the report, featured commentary on female genital mutilation and beating one's wife without leaving marks.

“We're going to through them book by book and if we find something that crosses the line or something that is radical or too extreme, then of course, it'll be off the shelf forever,” Abou Arab said.

Salam Elmenyawi, an imam and president of the Muslim Council of Montreal, said having controversial books doesn't mean the association agrees with their content.

“If we are to exclude each and every book that we find out something controversial on it, then we end up relegating ourselves to the dark ages,” said Elmenyawi, who is also a Muslim chaplain with McGill and Concordia.

A Concordia University spokeswoman says the administration has scheduled a meeting for the end of the week with the Muslim Students' Association over a situation it's "taking seriously and looking into.”