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Robert Kraft launches $25 million campaign to ‘Stand Up To Jewish Hate’ as anti-Semitic reported incidents spike to record high

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

Patriots owner Robert Kraft has launched a $25 million national campaign to fight anti-Semitism as anti-Semitic reported incidents surge to record highs across the region and country.Kraft’s Foundation to Combat Antisemitism announced its new initiative for all Americans — and especially non-Jews — to #StandUpToJewishHate by using the blue square emoji on social media as a unifying symbol of support.The foundation noted that Jews only make up 2.4% of the American population, but they’re the victims of 55% of religious-based hate crimes. That disturbing discrepancy is the cornerstone of this new campaign — in which the blue square emoji will take up 2.4% of TV and digital screens, billboards and social feeds to call attention to the disparity.“The #StandUpToJewishHate campaign is designed to raise awareness for the fight against antisemitism, specifically among non-Jewish audiences and to help all Americans understand that there is a role for each ...

Trump ‘hush money’ grand jury reconvenes in Manhattan as anticipation builds over possible indictment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

Molly Crane-Newman | (TNS) New York Daily NewsNEW YORK — The Manhattan grand jury hearing about former President Donald Trump’s “hush money” payment to porn star Stormy Daniels returned to court Monday, a law enforcement source told the Daily News.The grand jury, which usually starts the day at 2 p.m., was in the building by 1 p.m., the source said. It was unclear whether prosecutors intended to call more witnesses or ask the panel to vote on an indictment against Trump.Scores of reporters and photographers had the DA’s office surrounded as anticipation continued to build that Trump is about to become the first current or former U.S. president in history to face criminal charges.Stormy Daniels attends the Los Angeles Premiere Of Neon’s “Pleasure” at Linwood Dunn Theater on May 11, 2022, in Los Angeles. (Phillip Faraone/Getty Images/TNS)The week before last, Michael Cohen testified for the first time before the grand jury impaneled in January after meeting with pros...

Roslindale man, 60, dies after car crashes into porch: Police

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

A man who was struck by the car that slammed into a Roslindale porch on Sunday afternoon has died, according to police.The crash happened at 3968 Washington St., in Roslindale, at around 5:03 p.m. on Sunday.The man who was killed has been identified as Egdio Dantuony, 60, who lived at that Roslindale address, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.The second person who was struck by the vehicle is a 62-year-old man, the DA’s Office said. That man was injured and transported to a hospital.Related ArticlesCrime & Public Safety | Car slams into Roslindale porch, Boston Police investigating serious accident Crime & Public Safety | Boston Police seize 37 dirt bikes and mopeds, recover fentanyl and guns, and arrest 4 after ‘illegal drag racing’ investigation The accident led to BPD’s fatal accident reconstruction unit getting called to the scene, which means serious injuries were reported in the cras...

Ottawa appoints new official in charge of Indigenous corrections

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

OTTAWA — The federal government has appointed a deputy commissioner for Indigenous corrections in a move towards tackling the overrepresentation of Indigenous people in Canada’s criminal justice system.Correctional Service Canada announced Monday that it is promoting Kathy Neil, a Métis official, to serve in the role beginning May 1.The hiring of such a position was a call to justice in the final report of the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, which released its recommendations in 2019.Neil is currently the corrections agency’s assistant deputy commissioner of correctional operations in the Prairies, was previously the warden of Saskatchewan Penitentiary and has also served as a community health worker.“Through my personal and professional experience, I have seen first-hand the challenges and opportunities we have before us to improve the lives of Indigenous peoples in our care and custody,” Neil, who has 27 years of exper...

B.C. tribunal orders $9,755 payout to taxi driver over caste-based discrimination

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

VANCOUVER — The British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal has ordered that a taxi driver be paid more than $9,000 in compensation because his caste was insulted during a physical altercation at a staff Christmas party.The tribunal’s March 15 decision says Manoj Bhangu, an immigrant from Punjab in India, was discriminated against by two co-workers on the basis of his ancestry, place of origin, and race.Tribunal adjudicator Sonya Pighin says brothers Inderjit and Avninder Dhillon used a caste-based slur against Bhangu during the brawl at the B.C. firm’s 2018 party, and ordered that they pay him $9,755 in compensation.Pighin says in the decision that although she couldn’t conclude the brothers regarded Bhangu as their inferior, he had proven his “protected characteristics” were a factor in the adverse psychological impacts he suffered.She says Bhangu provided uncontested evidence he experienced shock and embarrassment after the incident and described it as di...

Patriots owner Robert Kraft campaigns against antisemitism

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft faced the camera during a video call, pointing to a small, sky-blue lapel pin on his blazer.The pin is the symbol of a $25 million “Stand Up to Jewish Hate” campaign launched Monday by the 81-year-old billionaire through his Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, aiming to raise awareness nationwide about soaring incidents of antisemitism online and in person. The campaign will feature emotive ads to be introduced by stars of top television shows such as NBC’s “The Voice,” and the “Kelly Clarkson Show,” and Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.”“This little blue square represents the Jewish population in the United States – 2.4%,” said Kraft, who was raised in Brookline, Massachusetts, in an observant Orthodox Jewish family. “But we’re the victims of 55% of the hate crimes in this country.”The ads are intended to tug at the heartstrings of non-Jewish Americans, said Matthew Berger, the foundation’s executive director. One o...

NJ takes over Paterson police after crisis worker’s shooting

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

PATERSON, N.J. — New Jersey’s attorney general said Monday that his office has taken control of the police department in the state’s third-largest city, Paterson, less than a month after officers there fatally shot a well-known crisis intervention worker during a tense standoff. Attorney General Matt Platkin said at a news conference that his office had assumed control of all police functions without delay, including the division that investigates internal police matters. His announcement didn’t mention the shooting of 31-year-old Najee Seabrooks directly, but it reflected activists’ concerns about how the department was being run. “There is a crisis of confidence in law enforcement in this city,” he said. “Something has to change and it will change starting now. Earlier this morning I exercised my authority as attorney general and superseded the Paterson police department.”Cheers from people in the audience erupted briefly, as well as calls of “thank you.” P...

Multidisciplinary artists from Vancouver, Toronto to vie for $50K photography award

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

TORONTO — Multidisciplinary artists from Vancouver and Toronto are in the running for the $50,000 Scotiabank Photography Award. Prize organizers have announced a short list including Ken Lum of Vancouver and Sandra Brewster and Chris Curreri, both of Toronto.The three finalists each get a $10,000 cash prize. The winner will be announced May 4. In addition to $50,000, the winner gets a solo exhibition at the 2024 Scotiabank Contact Photography Festival and a book of their work distributed worldwide by art book publisher Steidl. Scotiabank co-created the prize with Canadian photographer Edward Burtynsky in 2010.Burtynsky, chair of the award jury, says this year’s finalists “represent exceptional perspective, innovation and creativity within the photographic medium.”Last year’s winner, Jin-me Yoon, will have a solo exhibition at the festival in May.This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 27, 2023.The Canadian Press

Funeral for two Edmonton police officers shot and killed responding to call

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

EDMONTON — Under a bright sun on streets wrapped in a chill wind, the formal goodbye for two Edmonton police officers began Monday with a solemn procession from the legislature through the city’s downtown.The caskets of Const. Travis Jordan and Const. Brett Ryan inched along in side-by-side black hearses followed by block, after block, after block of police officers from across Canada. There were Edmonton officers in dress blues and black pants, and Mounties in red serge and Stetsons.They marched eight abreast, arms swinging amid the pipes and drums of interspersed marching bands while onlookers lined the streets, staring, some with hands in pockets, others holding up their cellphones. Some held up placards with painted blue hearts, others placed their right hands over their hearts as the hearses passed.High overhead, a helicopter clattered.“We’re here to support all of the first responders but in particular our son, who is a police officer with Calgary Police Services,” said Jim Fu...

Train derails in rural North Dakota and spills chemical

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:36:18 GMT

WYNDMERE, N.D. (AP) — A Canadian Pacific train derailed in rural North Dakota Sunday night and spilled hazardous materials. But local authorities and the railroad said there is no threat to public safety.There were no injuries and no fire associated with the derailment, which occurred in a rural area outside Wyndmere, a town of several hundred people about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Fargo.Canadian Pacific spokesperson Andy Cummings said 31 of the 70 cars on the train left the tracks around 11:15 p.m. Sunday, and some of the cars leaked liquid asphalt. But there are no waterways near where the derailment happened.The railroad’s hazardous materials experts are working with local first responders to clean up the spill. Several roads in the area were shut down.It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the derailment or exactly how much liquid asphalt spilled.Railroad safety has been in the spotlight nationally ever since last month’s fiery derailment of a Norf...