[Dion]

Ontario Human Rights Commission Barbara Hall voiced her support of Walsh’s actions in a letter to The Examiner on Friday.

Walsh bravely defended his player’s right not to be the subject of racial slurs and led his team off the ice in protest, Hall states.

“His action was admirable,” she states. “But the way he is being treated by the Ontario Minor Hockey Association – a full-season suspension – is not. All of us, on and off the ice, should stand up and say no to racist conduct.”

Sports organizations should be prohibiting, not sanctioning, racist conduct, Hall states.

http://www.torontosun.com/sports/hoc.../16599916.html

The decision has also prompted threats of a boycott of the OMHA’s three major corporate sponsors: Maple Lodge Farms, Pizza Pizza and Chrysler’s Dodge Caravan Kids.

Meanwhile, the organization Artists Against Racism will give Walsh its 2010 “Take A Stand” award. “He’s a great role model, and if we don’t recognize him, people won’t have the strength in the future to take a stand,” said executive director Lisa Cherniak.

http://www.thestar.com/news/article/...d-hockey-coach