asian fights back, gets suspended... then reinstated

But wait! It seems that the York Region District School Board has had a change of heart. In a dramatic reversal, the Asian student who was suspended for fighting back and breaking another kid's nose -- after being hit and racially taunted -- returns to Keswick High School today: York school board stands down, reinstates bullied student.

According to the boy's father, the student will return to school this morning with the suspension removed from his academic record and his upcoming expulsion hearing cancelled. Vindication!

Things began to turn around yesterday when the student and his parents were invited to a reconciliation session with his antagonist -- you know, the kid who called him a "fucking Chinese" -- and his parents. At that meeting, the white student apologized for calling him the racial slur and for punching him in the mouth. The Asian student apologized for breaking his classmate's nose.

The boy still faces a charge of assault causing bodily harm even though the white student's parents have twice called York Regional Police asking that the charges be dropped. Once charges have been laid, however, it's up to authorities to determine whether to proceed or not, which probably won't be decided until a first court appearance on May 13.

What a mess. The whole situation up to now has been handled improperly. The Asian student probably should never have been suspended in the first place. The Education Act states that a principal should consider whether harassment because race or ethnic origin may be a mitigating factor in the incident leading to suspension. All the principal apparently saw was a broken nose.