Caledon school council chair fired over tweet called Islamophobic

The Peel District School Board says it has fired a school council chair in Caledon, Ont., after he posted an Islamophobic tweet last week.

Ravi Hooda made the comment in reply to Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, who announced a by-law would allow mosques to play daily calls to prayer over loudspeakers during Ramadan.

Brown said the change was made to promote a sense of community for Muslims, who would generally gather for prayer during the fasting month of Ramadan but can’t because of COVID-19.

Brown says the change was made to promote a sense of community for Muslims, who would generally gather for prayer during the fasting month of Ramadan but can’t because of COVID-19.

The tweet has since been taken down and Hooda’s account is now locked and private.

The Peel District School Board say the post was disturbing and said Hooda will not be able to participate on the school council in any capacity.

In a letter sent by Macville Public School to families, the principal of the school said those comments didn’t help create a safe and inclusive space at the school.

“Please know that this individual’s views in no way reflect the values of the Macville Public School community, nor those of the Peel board. Comments like these are upsetting and hurtful, and never acceptable,” wrote principal Robin Perri.

Hooda was also a real estate partner with RE/MAX, which has since terminated their relationship.

The Brampton mayor commended RE/MAX on Tuesday for taking quick action to end their partnership with Hooda.

“Hate and islamophobia have no place in our community discourse,” said Brown on Twitter.

“We love our diversity and mosaic of faiths in #Brampton.”

Editor’s Note: This story has been corrected. A previous version stated that Ravi Hooda was a school council chair in Brampton. In fact, the school is located in Caledon.