Eideard

Members of a Scarborough mosque have expressed shock and disbelief that their “nice” and “humble” religious leader has been charged with a string of sexual assaults. Mohammad Masroor, the imam at the Baitul Mukarram Islamic Society…faces 13 charges involving sexual offences and death threats relating to five alleged victims…

Det. Const. Karen Armstrong said Masroor used his position of leadership “to his advantage.” She said Masroor, who teaches in the mosque as well as in private homes, knew the alleged victims…

“The victims are both male and female,” Armstrong said. “We believe there are other victims as (the accused) has lived and worked worldwide.”

Masroor taught in Florida, Michigan and Bangladesh before coming to Canada, according to police. He has also lived and taught in Germany, France, Hungary, Singapore and Sri Lanka but police said the investigation is not limited to those areas…

Members of the mosque were especially upset that the allegations come during the holy month of Ramadan…

Yes, I think he’s actually a Romulan pretending to be a Vulcan.

Thanks, James

Photographs by David McNew/Getty Images

Accusing his rival, Meg Whitman, of trying to illegally “manipulate” the election for governor and intimidate him into quitting the race, Republican Steve Poizner on Monday reported her campaign to state and federal law enforcement authorities.

Poizner, the state insurance commissioner who is squaring off against Whitman, the billionaire former EBay chief, in a GOP primary in June, gave reporters an e-mail received by one of his advisors from her consultant Mike Murphy. In it Murphy asked, “Is there anything we can do to get SP to reconsider this race?” He added, “We can spend $40m+ tearing up Steve if we must…”

This was followed by an offer to bankroll a campaign in 2012 for Congress against Diane Feinstein.

In Poizner’s letter to law enforcement agencies, he said Murphy had threatened in a call to another aide to put the candidate “through the wood chipper.”

Poizner told reporters that the attempts at coercing him to drop out violated state and federal law.

Whitman “does not have the right to try to manipulate this election process by clearing the field through intimidation and threats,” Poizner said. “Voters need to have choices…”

Murphy said he had attempted “to avoid a costly and unnecessary Republican primary,” let Poizner out of a sinking campaign and unite Republicans behind his own candidate to defeat Democrat Jerry Brown.

Har! Throw some Amerika First Teabaggers and anti-abortion nutballs into the mix, as well. Let ‘em all stew together.

He had heard his white classmate throw an angry racial slur in his direction after an argument during a gym class game of speedball, and now the student was shoving him backward, refusing to retract the smear.

The white student swung first, hitting the 15-year-old with a punch to the mouth.

The 15-year-old heard his father’s voice running through his head: Fight only as a last resort, only in self-defence, only if given no choice, and only with the left hand – his weaker left hand.

His swing was short and compact, a left-handed dart that hit the white student square on the nose.

The nose broke under his fist, igniting a sequence of events – from arrest to suspension to possible expulsion – that has left the Asian student and his family wondering whether they are welcome in this small, rural and mostly white community north of Toronto, one that has been touched by anti-Asian attacks in the past.

The 15-year-old, the only person charged in connection with the April 21 school fight, faces one count of assault causing bodily harm.

But a remarkable thing happened this week. On Monday, 400 of his fellow students, wearing black in solidarity and carrying signs of support, walked out of Keswick High School to rally in protest in front of their school.

Organizer Mathew Winch, a Grade 12 student, said the school has fewer than 10 Asian students, but everyone wanted to stand up against bullying and racism.

After the public outcry, the York Regional Police hate crimes unit reopened the case. Although the other student has not been charged…

The town, the region, has a history of racist crime especially against Asian immigrants. That doesn’t explain away inaction by school officials and the police. They are charged with being above bigotry – whether it feels good or not.

It’s about time for them to start acting like representatives of a free country.

UPDATE: The school board has revoked the boy’s suspension.