We trawl the news media so you don’t have to.

India in Queens, With a Caribbean Accent

The A train rumbles to a halt at the Ozone Park/Lefferts Boulevard stop in central Queens. To the east, a dozen blocks of Liberty Avenue unfold in a series of roti, sari and gold shops that make up the fragrant spine of Richmond Hill, a community of immigrants who descend from Indians sent to the Caribbean to work on sugar plantations in the 19th century. The NewYorkTimes: Read More…

Woman appeals veil decision

A Toronto-area Muslim woman who alleges that two men sexually assaulted her – and wants to give evidence in court wearing a veil – is appealing an Ontario Superior Court ruling that initially appeared to be in her favour but did not fully grant her the right to testify with her face covered. The Globe and Mail: Read More…

Race and Star Trek

A discussion on Race in the new Star Trek movie. A franchise that had once been praised for its diversity (which was impressive for the ‘60s) has once again become the playground of white heterosexual men.  Shameless: Read More and Participate in the Discussion…

Bill Proposes Immigration Rights for Gay Couples

Senator Patrick J. Leahy, the Democrat from Vermont who is the powerful chairman of the Judiciary Committee, is adding another controversial ingredient to the volatile mix of an immigration debate that President Obama has said he hopes to spur in Congress before the end of the year. The NewYorkTimes: Read More…

Ottawa looks to redefine rules for Indian status

The Conservative government says it will rewrite the 19th century Indian Act this summer with “willing” aboriginal groups, opting not to challenge a court ruling that struck down the law’s definition of Indian. Few pieces of Canadian legislation are as contentious as the Indian Act, which was introduced in 1876 and has not had a significant update since 1985. That rewrite 24 years ago sought to end the discrimination in the definition of status Indian as it applied to women. However, two recent court decisions in what is called the McIvor case have ruled that women are still treated unfairly in some scenarios when it comes to passing their status down to their grandchildren. The Globe and Mail: Read More…

Eastenders unveils gay Muslim storyline

Eastenders is planning to spice up the plotline revolving its only Asian / Muslim family with a gay twist. The BBC soap’s producers said today that the storyline would be a, “traditional love affair, albeit with a modern multicultural twist”.  Asians in Media: Read More…

Sam George: Relentless in his pursuit of answers

For more than a decade after an officer shot and killed his younger brother at Ontario’s Ipperwash Provincial Park, he refused to accept anything short of a full airing of what happened. Dudley George was among about 30 men, women and children from the Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation who occupied the park, on the sandy shores of Lake Huron, on Sept. 4, 1995. They were reclaiming a sacred burial ground on the site, which their ancestors, under pressure, had ceded to local interests, who in turn sold it to the Ontario government in 1936. A  heavily-armed OPP tactical squad marched on the protesters, and Dudley George was shot. The Globe and Mail: Read More…

Imran Ahmad: How a Muslim boy went to meet Americans

My aim was to re-humanise the relationship between America and the Muslim world, to counter the unthinking tribalism which results in polarisation, dehumanisation and demonisation. I didn’t expect to achieve this single-handedly, but I believed that I could make a difference. In the end, I drove 13,934 miles across the United States in a hybrid car, and had 41 scheduled speaking events. Asian in Media: Read More…