It’s a reality not many people know about, or would like to talk about. It is the steady number of Muslims who are getting caught up in crime and finding themselves behind bars.

People who work with inmates in federal and provincial jails say there is far too little support from the wider Muslim community for those who are convicted.

Yasin Dwyer is a one-time Ottawa resident who now resides in Hamilton. For the past six years, he has had a front-row seat to the changing demographics in the province’s federal prison population.

 As a chaplain with Corrections Services Canada, Mr. Dwyer is responsible for helping incarcerated men and women of all backgrounds in several Ontario federal jails discover or re-discover their spiritual needs. That’s only when, or if, Mr. Dwyer can meet with them.

 “I think that right now, we're barely hanging on,” says Mr. Dwyer in a phone interview with the Muslim Link from his home, referring to the lack of volunteers who support him in his work. “One of the main principals of chaplaincy is having a visible presence . . . that is not always possible.”

Mr. Dwyer estimates that there are about 300-400 Muslim offenders being held in federal prisons located in Ontario. That doesn’t count the number of Muslims jailed in provincial prisons, so overall, the number is far higher. Problem is, says Mr. Dwyer, the Muslim community has been slow to volunteer support.

“There's just not a lot of awareness concerning the needs of Muslim offenders,” says Mr. Dwyer.

“We are still behind. We have to be honest, there is a real stigma attached to those who are in prison. It is a source of shame for many and we are battling that perception. [People think] that the walls around the institution are not part of the community. We have to make Muslims understand that it is a Muslim responsibility. Many of these people who have made mistakes and broken the law will come out one day. We have to make sure that they are connected with the community and to hold them accountable and to help them become productive citizens.” 

It’s a message Solaiman Khan of the Islamic Care Centre has been spreading for years - with limited affect. The tireless community activist has visited Muslim inmates in the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre (a provincial institution) for two decades or so. He says there are only a handful of volunteers who regularly visit the local jail. And the few who go don’t always get to see the inmates, depending on variables they cannot control. Mr. Khan believes the province needs to hire a full-time chaplain who is able to provide timely and regular support.

“We are not getting enough exposure,” says Khan of the few Muslims who visit.

“We want a full-time Muslim chaplain. It is not going to come easy, I think if we can get enough political support we can justify it,” he says, pointing out that Native inmates, numbering far less than their Muslim counterparts, do receive visits from a paid Native spiritual worker on a regular basis.

It’s an issue that Hawa Mohamed has been bringing up in meetings with provincial officials and MPPs. She is the chair of the Canadian Somali Mothers Association and her own son was incarcerated four years ago on a charge of manslaughter, of which he was recently convicted. She says it has been rare to find Muslims supporting her son.

“There were only two men and they come only time to time,” she says from her home in Ottawa-South, where she raised four other children on her own, all the way up to university.

“We try to recruit Muslim volunteers to go there [the Ottawa-Carleton Detention Centre]. Two years ago, when we found them, [they received training], then they showed up once or twice.”

Ms. Mohamed says other faith groups are far more organized.

“When you compare us to the Christians, they come as a group and they are really involved very well,” says Ms. Mohamed, arguing that her son has been left in a moral vacuum with far too little spiritual support. Without moral grounding, the chances that inmates will later re-offend, is higher, she says.

Ms. Mohamed and her group have raised this issue with the Ontario Premier’s office, and she says she has been working closely with an official there. She has also spoken with Yasir Naqvi, the Liberal Member of the provincial legislature on the topic. In a phone interview, he says he hopes to get a better understanding of the situation.

 “We need more clarity,” he explains from his office in Ottawa-Centre. “[And] we need to make sure that the correctional services and the community works together... if we need services of a chaplain, let's make that happen. We will need the time and resources,” he says.

In the meantime, groups like the Canadian Friends of Somalia have received federal funding to address one of the root causes of crime – substance abuse. That group is also hoping to organize a program of visitation of local area Muslim inmates.

Farah Aw-Osman, the association’s president, says Ottawa court dockets are full of Muslims charged with a variety of offences including assault, drug trafficking and other similar activity. In fact, visiting the courthouse on any given day would leave a person “in shock”, says Mr. Aw-Osman, of the number of Muslims you would find awaiting trial.

For Mr. Aw-Osman and others like him who are working at the front-lines of this reality, the key message is that Muslim communities must deal with all its issues, positive and negative.

“We share in the successes and failures of our society,” concludes Mr. Dwyer. “Our neighbours have dealt with this; our churches have dealt with this; . . . it is one area in our community life that we have to deal with.”

Two information sessions were recently held by the Islam Care Centre, and more recently by the Muslim Coordinating Council, to explore the topic.