Prime Minister Justin Trudeau greets members of a Syrian refugee family. OTTAWA—Last spring, school boards grappled with the practical issues that came with welcoming thousands of new Syrian students: finding them desks, pencils, books. Schools have wrestled with Islamophobia since the terrorist attacks of 9/11 but there was never intense educator interest in combating the problem, said Amira Elghawaby, communications director for the National Council of Canadian Muslims. “The previous federal election where Islam and Muslims were at the forefront for all the wrong reasons, combined with the arrival of Syrian refugees, suddenly this is on people’s radars,” she said. Teachers, too, were phoning, seeking resources to help them understand the issue and how to respond.

Source: thestar August 24, 2016 21:56 UTC