The Muslim Council of Montreal says it is receiving many more reports of verbal and hateful attacks since the Parti Quebecois government introduced concrete proposals for its Charter of Quebec Values.
In the first seven months of 2013 the Council was told of 25 complaints.
"From Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 there have been 117," said Adil Charkaoui, pointing out the overwhelming majority of those attacked are women.
Not all the crimes are physically violent, but it seems the PQ's plan to outlaw the hijab among civil servants has given bigots permission to express their hatred.
Hanaadi Saad, who testified at a recent conference about being subjected to verbal abuse, says it's not the Quebec she knows.
In the last few weeks she's been followed and accused of trying to convert the children in her home daycare to Islam.
"It's racism and Islamaphobia and I feel very bad. I don't want to leave my Quebec," said Saad.
Montreal blogger Fariha Naqvi-Mohamed is another woman who says she was harassed while wearing a hijab, saying she went to a movie theatre and was called a "f***ing racist" when she asked a woman to turn off her cell phone.
"This happened this weekend in the West Island," said Naqvi-Mohamed. "It was at my daughter's birthday party."
Because the woman continued to insult her, Naqvi-Mohamed went to the theatre's management and asked them to intervene.
"Management stepped in and asked them to leave and that's when she started calling me a terrorist," said Naqvi-Mohamed.
Born and raised in Montreal, Naqvi-Mohamed said she has never been subject to this type of harassment ever before.
Constitutional lawyer Julius Grey said the PQ charter is giving government approval to an ugly trend.
"In most western countries Islamaphobia has replaced anti-semitism and colour racism," said Grey.
The head of the local polling firm Mark Ethnik says an internet poll they conducted shows 43 percent of Muslims find the current social climate very tense.
Charkaoui says they blame some media outlets and the government for allowing the social climate to deteriorate to this point.
Democratic Institutions minister Bernard Drainville said he's happy with the tone the debate has taken so far.
"Overall it's been very respectful," Drainville said.
The official Charter legislation will be tabled in the National Assembly on Thursday.