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7 | W aterloo C hronicle | T hursday,A pril 15,2021 w aterloochronicle.ca It's okay to admit you have a problem We're "HEAR" to help! • 550 Fennell Ave. E. Unit 16 B, Hamilton 289-768-6167 • 723 Rymal Rd.W. Unit 500, Hamilton 289-768-8971 • 570 University Ave. E. Unit 905,Waterloo 888-907-1436 • 350 Conestoga Blvd. Unit B3, Cambridge 888-737-9976 • 168 Barton St. Unit 3, Stoney Creek 289-203-3256 • 1144Wilson St.W. Unit D203,Ancaster 289-203-3195AWARD WINNING CLINIC | Doctor of Audiology NOW OPEN! 370Winston Road Grimsby, 289-206-5364 OPEN EvENiNgs aNd saturdays by aPPOiNtmENt Certified Lyric provider • www.auburnmountainhearing.com Today's hearing aids are not only discrete, they can offer some really modern features! Today's basic digital hearing aids offer far more benefit than the best hearing aids of previous generations. They can feature bluetooth compatibility with your television, rechargeable batteries, smartphone apps and tinnitus masking features. At Auburn and Mountain Hearing Centres, our experienced providers will test your hearing, select and dispense the hearing instrument best suited to meet your needs. We also provide support, counseling and servicing of the hearing systems. PaymENt PlaNs availablE April 12 - 17, 2021 Weekly Specials Store Made Smoked Pork Chops Store Made Buffalo Chicken Kabobs Locally Made Sauerkraut Store Made Mild or Hot Italian Sausage Freshly Cut Beef Rump Roast Store Made Mild or Hot Pepperstix (24 pack) Store Made Fresh Regular or Garlic Pork Sausage Store Made Deli Sliced Baked Texas Jalapeno Loaf Store Made Deli Sliced Regular or Garlic Bologna Super Special! Store Made Beef Burgers 12 x 4 oz $17.99 box Reg $19.99 box 519-699-45903031 Lobsinger Line, HeidelbergMon-Wed 8-6; Thurs-Fri 8-8; Sat 7:30-5 $8.99 lb Reg $9.99 lb $3.99 ea Reg $4.59 ea $3.99 lb Reg $4.99 lb $5.99 lb Reg $6.49 lb $8.99 ea Reg $10.49 ea $6.49 pkg Reg $7.49 pkg $3.49 lb Reg $3.99 lb $6.99 lb Reg $7.99 lb $5.99 lb Reg $6.99 lb gender, nationality or cul- ture to help document rac- ism and intolerance in Wa- terloo region. "Hate is hate," accord- ing to Mazhar, who said that while there has been an increase in anti-Asian and anti-Muslim senti- ment in recent months - in stores and parks, on trails and roadways - it can some- times be perpetuated by the victimized communi- ties as well. A recent series by Met- roland Media looked at the threshold an incident needs to meet in order to be considered a hate crime, defined by police as a crime where hate was a motivat- ing factor. Hate, in and of itself, doesn't constitute crime, Mazhar noted, rendering many disturbing and ag- gressive confrontations as simple neighbourhood dis- putes. In a recent interview, Muslim Social Services Kitchener-Waterloo found- er Idrisa Pandit said the burden of proof for people can be onerous. "Does the person have to be dead, before you can de- termine whether a crime is a hate crime or not?" she said. Relatively few cases of discrimination ever reach the Human Rights Tribu- nal of Ontario and current- ly there's no baseline to un- derstand the scope of the is- sue, Mazhar added. Data released by Statis- tics Canada shows police reported hate crimes were up seven per cent in 2019 from 2018. Other than a peak of 2,073 hate crimes in 2017, police-reported num- bers were the highest since 2009. The StatsCan data comes out two years later, Mazhar noted. "The recent spate of at- tacks against Asians and Muslim women in Canada should be of deep concern to anyone," the coalition stated in a press release. "There has also been a spike of non-violent hate crimes." The coalition points out that statistics only account for a third of the actual number of hate crimes, as most go unreported. Mazhar said that the Waterloo Regional Police Service Board wrote a let- ter in support of the coali- tion's efforts to start the on- line reporting system, which received federal and provincial funding. While the coalition has worked to address issues of Islamophobia and xeno- phobia for some time, the issues extend far beyond Muslim women and the Is- lamic community, she said. Police have cited a reluc- tance in reporting racist in- cidents to police and sug- gested the coalition could assist in the collection of such information. Is this another instance where victims are having to solve issues themselves? "I'm a person who sees the glass as half full," re- plied Mazhar. "This is a challenge our community is facing. Of course we didn't choose this challenge, but we're choosing to take charge." Mazhar hopes the data will reveal trends, leading to resolve, whether in the form of restorative justice, or meaningful leads that can lead to trespassing and criminal charges. "Where is it happening? Where is it happening more?" she said. "Then, maybe we'll know patterns of beha- viour as well." People using the online system can report inci- dents anonymously or leave their name and con- tact, providing as much in- formation as they want about their own identity and experience. The coalition can pro- vide a variety of resources and referrals, from helping people fill out police forms and file human rights com- plaints, to counselling ser- vices and various Commu- nity Justice Initiatives. - with files from Lauren Scott STORY BEHIND THE STORY: The Coalition of Muslim Women of KW have initiated a variety of projects to address racism in recent years. The Chron- icle followed up on its lat- est announcement about a new online reporting sys- tem. NEWS Continued from page 1 'OF COURSE WE DIDN'T CHOOSE THIS CHALLENGE, BUT WE'RE CHOOSING TO TAKE CHARGE' ReportingHate.ca went live Thursday, April, 8, 2021. ReportingHate.ca Photo