For around a decade, educators, psychiatrists and social scientists have been raising the alarm that something is going wrong for boys. Poorly served by an education system that privileges female ways of learning, and no longer having access to other sources of guidance and self-development in community settings, boys are falling through the cracks. Boys' scores in school are statistically lower than those of girls, and every year, fewer boys than girls make it to university or graduate. Those who work with boys are finding that they are increasingly disconnected: isolated and unplugged from their social contexts, they retreat into virtual worlds of computer and video games - and in some cases, into negative social groupings such as gangs.

The horrific events in Boston and the arrests of two men in Canada on terrorism charges sent shock waves of emotion through Muslim communities across North America. The violent killing and maiming of innocents so close to home brought feelings of disbelief, shock, and overwhelming sadness.

For many Muslims, a sickening feeling of dread also grew in the backdrop of all these emotions. As the media machines hurried to churn out headlines, analysis, and reports with the words 'Muslim' and 'terror' splashed across homepages and front pages, you could almost feel the entire Muslim community collectively bracing for a public backlash.