GoFundMe for boy orphaned in attack on Muslim family in Canada surpasses $800K

Donations have been pouring in to help the orphaned child of Muslim family murdered in a hate crime in Canada on June 6.

Fayez Salman and his family were walking in London, Ontario, when the suspect, a 20-year-old white male, hit the group of people with his truck. Nine-year-old Fayez was the sole survivor of the attack, which police say was premeditated and religiously motivated.

A close family friend started a GoFundMe page to elicit donations for Fayez, with the goal of $850,000 in Canadian dollars. As of Friday, four days after it was created, the fundraiser was just short of its goal, with more than $818,000 raised.

“This gofundme campaign is one of many ways the Pakistani community in London can support each other in the face of the hatred our community has undeservedly received in this instance and countless others,” the fundraiser’s description reads.

“The horrific nature of the crimes perpetrated against the Salman family serve as a reminder of the long shadow of Islamophobia that is cast on the lives of peaceful Muslim families across the world.”

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau echoed similar sentiments in a Tuesday address, calling the killing a “terrorist attack.”

“What happened on Sunday in London, this act of terrorism and Islamophobia is sickening,” he said. “It is heartbreaking. It’s hard to find words that are enough.”

Trudeau vowed to take action to stop similar acts of hatred from occurring in the future.

“Whether through the security infrastructure program, by cracking down on online extremism or by dismantling far-right hate groups, we will continue doing everything we can to fight violence in every form,” he said. “The consequences of doing anything less are simply too great.”