‘Frightening’ attacks leave Ontario Muslims shaken
As police investigate possible hate crime, Muslim women worry about future intimidation
CBC News | November 17, 2015
Muslims in Toronto say a string of potential hate crimes that have struck southern Ontario in the days following the horrific Paris attacks are unacceptable in Canada.
On Monday, Toronto police said a Muslim woman reported she was attacked from behind while picking up her children from school and beaten by two white men who called her a “terrorist.”
The attack comes after a mosque in Peterborough was badly damaged by a fire that appears to have been deliberately set. And in Kitchener, a Hindu temple’s windows were broken by rock-throwing vandals — in that case, police haven’t ruled out the possibility that the attack was a misguided retaliation for what happened in Paris.
. . .
An online map tracking hate crimes, maintained by the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), shows there have been several other hate-driven incidents in the area, including threatening graffiti and vandalism.
“Such hateful and cowardly acts are abhorrent to all Canadians who stand united in condemning xenophobia and hatred,” NCCM Executive Director Ihsaan Gardee said in a news release….