It’s probably no secret from some of my statements that I am an advocate of policing and a lover of social media. A little-known fact about me: I did my undergrad in philosophy, but it was specifically focusing on Islamic Golden Age philosophy and theology in a historical lens. I never thought all of those things would come together, but they did.

Early on in my journey of being an MPP, I was on Instagram, and I ended up connecting with a Toronto police officer where we were talking about school resource officers. Our friendship since then has developed significantly. My friend Farhan Ali, who is present here, is a Muslim officer, and his insights became incredibly important to me as an MPP representing a very diverse riding with a lot of newcomers to Canada. He was a wonderful resource for me.

I’m also, as you know, a big advocate of community policing, which is about building those relationships early on. What I’m very pleased to be commemorating today is that Farhan has joined with Constable Haroon Siddiqui, who was primarily our first Muslim liaison officer, and together, the two of them are now part of a new operation, a new organization, spearheaded by Officer Demkiw of the Toronto Police Service, to really maintain those relationships: to foster current relationships and build new ones in the Muslim community. I think that’s an absolutely wonderful initiative and, also, I want to celebrate good friends of mine.