No Surprise Here: The White House Avoids Labeling Quebec Mosque Shooter A ‘Terrorist’
ALICE CHICHE/AFP/Getty Images
By Danielle Kwateng-Clark ·

It’s amazing how many names some people will come up with to avoid calling a White male citizen who shoots at groups of innocent people a “terrorist.” But that’s exactly what Alexandre Bissonnette, 27, should be considered after killing six and injuring 19 worshippers at the Quebec Islamic Cultural Center on Sunday (Jan 29).

On Monday, the introverted student, who aligned with the beliefs of President Donald Trump and French nationalist leader Marine Le Pen, was charged with six counts of first-degree murder and five counts of attempted murder.

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The crime––committed within 48 hours of Trump’s highly controversial travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries––was called an act of terror against Muslims by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Yet still, Canadian Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale called Bissonnette a “lone wolf” and noted that his actions wouldn’t heighten the terror threat. “At this time, the National Terrorism Threat Level for Canada remains at ‘medium,’ where it has stood since 2014,” Goodale said.

Adding insult to injury is the current United States administration’s response, which downplayed the terrorist act by saying its recent regulation will avoid incidents like this. Mind games, we know.

“We condemn this attack in the strongest possible terms,” said White House press secretary Sean Spicer, who reportedly did not refer to the shooting as terrorism. “It’s a terrible reminder of why we must remain vigilant, and why the president is taking steps to be proactive, rather than reactive, when it comes to our nation’s safety and security.

“We’re going to put the safety of Americans first, we’re not going to wait and react, as I said in the statement, the president is going to be very proactive in protecting this country,” he added. “We’re not going to wait until we get attacked and figure how we can make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Meanwhile, authorities on Monday identified the six slain victims. 

And because their names matter, they are: Mamadou Tanou Barry, 42; Abdelkrim Hassane, 41; Khaled Belkacemi, 60; Aboubaker Thabti, 44; Azzeddine Soufiane, 57; and Ibrahima Barry, 39.