The father of Alexandre Bissonnette, the Quebec City mosque shooter has now alleged that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has put his family in danger. According to a report by CBC, Raymond Bissonnette recently penned an open letter to Trudeau in which claimed that by putting the label "terrorist" on his son, Trudeau "greatly increased" the level of danger faced by his family. Raymond Bissonnette makes clear that he believes his son's actions were "of the most terrible kind". However, Bissonette argues that the term "terrorist" doesn't apply to him because he didn't identify with any "particular ideology". It's true that the shooter was never charged with terrorism. However, Trudeau has repeatedly referred to him and his actions as such. The prime minister is by no means the only one to do so, either. According to CBC, Foreign Minister Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland referred to the shooter as a terrorist during a United Nation Debate on terrorism back in March. The shooter is currently serving a life sentence in prison with no chance of parole for 40 years after killing six people and injuring six other during a deadly shooting at a mosque back in January of 2017. People seem to be largely in support of Trudeau, and believe that he was not in the wrong to call him a terrorist: He, is, though?— Will Borys (@will_borys) April 26, 2019 Would they prefer ‘Mass Murderer’?!— Erin Finn Macdonell (@ErinSUPnGirl) April 26, 2019 His anger is mis-directed. His son did a horrible thing and is the reason for the danger to his family. Not Trudeau calling him a terrorist...even though that’s exactly what he is.— Q T 🥧 (@AntCutiePie) April 26, 2019 I understand where they’re coming from, but bruh, that was terrorism.— Damian Monroe (@DMonroeRight) April 26, 2019 The official dictionary definition of "terrorist" is "the unlawful use of violence and intimidation, especially against civilians, in the pursuit of political aims." But, in light of Bissonnette's statement, Canadians are now debating whether or not the Quebec City mosque shooter is, in fact, a terrorist. The shooter's parents had previously written an open letter about what they believed to be unjust sentencing for their son: "If we really want to prevent such a tragedy from happening again, it seems to me that the solution is not to lock someone up forever, but rather try to better understand and prevent bullying, which is a serious societal problem that continues to make victims among our young," the letter reads. Trudeau has yet to issue a response.
