EDMONTON – Muslim women donning Hijab and waiting at an Edmonton light-rail transit station received a heartwarming surprise after a group of Edmonton women gave them flowers in a gesture against hate.

“There is so much hate going around, especially in the last couple months … and it’s amazing to know there are people here that want you to feel wanted,” Yasmeen Abdallah, one of the Muslim women to received a flower, told The Canadian Press on Thursday, December 8.

The woman who organized the gesture said she hoped it sends a powerful message against hate after two Muslim women were targeted in what police say could be a hate crime.

Last month, a man approached two women at the station wearing hijabs, fashioned a noose in a rope he took from his pocket, said it was meant for them and then sang O Canada.

Janelle Venne, one of the organizers, said Canada is stronger when diversity is accepted and Muslim women are welcome and deserve to feel safe.

AUPE (Alberta Union of Provincial Employees) Vice President Carrie-Lynn Rusznak echoed a similar opinion.

“AUPE’s Human Rights Committee is committed to educating our members and the public on issues of equality and discrimination. As Albertans it is our responsibility to stand in solidarity with our Muslim sisters and brothers who are being unfairly targeted because of their faith,” Rusznak wrote on Facebook.

“Today’s action is one small way of doing so and we will continue to spread that message.”