Thorold City Council has passed a new by-law amendment that prohibits the cemetery director from selling internment rights to an unopened area of the cemetery before selling out a currently opened area first.
The amendment has seemingly put a stop to a proposal from the local Muslim community to get their own dedicated burial area at Lakeview Cemetery.
According to religious tradition, Muslims can’t be buried next to non-Muslims, and because there are no dedicated Muslim cemeteries in Niagara, residents often have to go as far as Hamilton to bury their loved ones.
Back in February, members of Mosque Aisha in downtown Thorold asked the city to set aside a portion of Lakeview Cemetery as a dedicated area for Muslim burial plots.
"We are a part of this city, we are part of this community,” Imam Asad Mahmood told council members, at the time. “ A cemetery is one of the basic needs of any resident in any city in the world.”
With the passing of the new cemetery by-law amendment, city council has seemingly closed the door on that proposal.
It was Councillor Carmen DeRose who brought forward the amendment during the July 11 city council meeting. What prompted him to raise the issue was not stated, but he did say he believed the matter to be time sensitive.
Councillor DeRose told fellow councillors that he consulted with St. Catharines City Hall staff who told him they have similar wording for their cemetery by-laws, and he said the proposed by-law amendment is common practice across cemeteries in the Region.
According to the amendment, “The Director will determine which, and in what order, lots, niches, and crypts are available for sale of internment rights,” and “The Director shall not sell internment rights to an unopened area of the cemetery prior to selling out a currently opened area.”
But Councillor Tim O’Hare believes that the amendment will open the door to discriminatory practices.
“I think it’s a sad day if we pass this and restrict Thoroldites from being able to use our cemetery as it is meant to be used,” he told fellow councillors. “It’s a large cemetery, we have room for everybody.”
The councillors who voiced their support for the amendment claimed it would facilitate inclusion.
“There are many different people buried there from different ethnic origins, different religions, and I think what could have happened is that we could have had segregation,” said Councillor Anthony Longo.
Several councillors said that they think the amendment will help fill up the cemetery in an orderly fashion.
“The cemetery is huge, you don’t want to start putting plots all over the place,” said Councillor Henry D'Angela. “You want to work within a certain section. You fill that up and then move to the next one. That’s just prudent.”
Councillor O’Hare urged council members to reconsider their position.
“We’re looking at it from a Christian point of view,” he said. “There are other faiths that have different practices. We have the room. It is not segregation, they are in our cemetery, besides another group of residents. It’s just what their religion requires of them.”
But his plea fell on deaf ears.
“It isn’t about keeping people out,” said Councillor Ken Sentance. “A Muslim family can buy 20 plots, couldn’t they? If they’re available in one area. If they’re available, you can buy many in a row.”
Almost all councillors voted in favour of the amendment, as did Mayor Terry Ugulini. The only dissenting votes came from Councillors O’Hare and Nella Dekker.
And thus the local Muslim community will not be able to bury their loved ones in Thorold anytime soon.
