The Gulf Within: Canadian Arabs, Racism and the Gulf War

Raj S. Gandhi is a sociology professor at the University of Calgary.

This book tells one of the most important and neglected stories of the
Gulf War—the experiences of Arab- and Muslim-Canadians in Canada
during the conflict. When the Canadian government went to war against
Iraq, many Canadians of Arab or Muslim background found that they were
being identified with the enemy. On the street, in workplaces, in
schools, and in the media, they became targets of ignorance, hostility,
and paranoia. Many key institutions in Canadian society identified Arab-
and Muslim-Canadians with the enemy government of Iraq. The media sought
out individuals who criticized the government’s decision to go to war
against Iraq and treated them as extremists. The RCMP and Canada’s
domestic security agency—CSIS—mounted an extensive operation of
surveillance, interrogation, and intimidation against the Arab and
Muslim communities. School administrators failed to respond to instances
of racism triggered by the war.

The Canadian Arab Federation estimates that there are approximately
250,000 Arabs in Canada, about 200,000 of them followers of Islam. In
addition, Canada is home to at least another 100,000 Muslims from places
as diverse as Guyana, Fiji, India, Pakistan, Africa, Eastern Europe, the
Soviet Union, Malaysia, and Indonesia. During the Gulf War, the U.S.
bombing of Iraq meant, for many in these groups, either a missing
relative or friend, as well as the mistreatment that accompanied
Canada’s increasing acquiescence to U.S. policy. This book’s
underlying message is that all ethnic minorities in Canada deserve the
same sensitivity that has been accorded others, and that Canada’s
foreign policy must be independent of that of the United States if the
country is to stay true to its multicultural nature.

To write this book, journalist Zuhair Kashmeri traveled across Canada
and interviewed many Arab- and Muslim-Canadians. He tells the personal
stories of nine families, whose experiences illustrate how the Gulf War
affected their communities. His book offers an important new perspective
on the impact of the Gulf War on Canada. It also offers a model for
similar works on other ethnic minorities in the country.