Emotional Sudbury vigil for victims of Paris attack

There were many tears and hugs, but also great pride Sunday afternoon from Sudbury's French community, dignitaries and around 100 supporters at a vigil to commemorate the victims of the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris.

“I'm just sad this happens all around the world. Every day there are people dying for nothing,” said Hugo Perrin, a French citizen born in Paris and currently studying law at Laurentian University. “I just wish people could love each other and enjoy life.”

Perrin said he was shocked by the terrorist attacks in Paris Friday that killed at least 132 victims, and injured another 352 people.

He said he has family in Paris, but they are all okay.

“I'm just waiting to go back to France to hug them,” he said. “I just wish I could be in France right now.”

Perrin joined many of his countrymen and women in singing the French national anthem, “La Marseillaise” to pay tribute to the victims and stand united against the violence that took their lives.

“We all should be united against the terrorists. No one has the right to kill anyone,” said Maryam Abdulahad, also a student in Sudbury.

In an emotional speech, Abdulahad said the killers who took more than 130 lives Friday do not represent Islam.

“It hurts me so much to see people who are dying because of others who are pretending they are Muslims,” she said. “Islam in Arabic means peace.”

Abdulahad said the news of the tragedy in Paris affected her as though she had lost members of her own family.

“What if that was my brother or my sister?” she said. “It's just not fair for innocent people to die.”

Sudbury Police Chief Paul Pedersen, who helped organize the vigil, said he agreed that people should not conflate terrorism with any one religion or culture.

“Criminality and terrorism; that's not bound in religion,” he said. “That's bound in radicalization. To isolate, segregate and stereotype is wrong on any level.”

Pedersen said the events in France helped illustrate how we live in a global village, and a tragedy across the Atlantic Ocean can still have a big impact in Canada, and in Sudbury.

Laurentian University professor Jean-Charles Cachon, who has held the title of honorary French consul in Sudbury since 2002, spearheaded Sunday's vigil.

He said he was touched by the strong response to the ceremony under such short notice.

Cachon said he expected around 25 people to show up for the vigil at Memorial Park, but the turnout was closer to 100 people who wanted to pay their respects.

Many members of city council, along with the regions MPs and MPPs, were also at the vigil to stand in friendship with the people of France.