A man threw a brick at a Michigan campaign office Thursday and then proceeded to say he did it because the candidate is a “f****** Arab.”

Democrat Abbas Alawieh, who’s running for a Dearborn-based seat in the Michigan state Senate, detailed the incident in a press release. Alawieh confronted the individual who allegedly targeted his Dearborn Heights office and recorded the conversation he had with the man.

“What’s the issue?” Alawieh asked the man at one point.

“You’re a f****** Arab,” the man who wasn’t identified in the press release or video said. “F*** you.”

In a statement, Alawieh said he and his team were meeting Thursday morning when they heard a loud bang against the wall of their office building. When Alawieh went outside to see what had happened, he saw a man trying to force open a locked door to the office.

“I asked what his issue was, and he immediately began hurling hateful, anti-Arab and Islamophobic insults at me,” Alawieh said.

The man had thrown a brick at a painting that included Alawieh’s name on the side of the building, the statement said.

Alawieh said he wants to ensure “every person, no matter their background, faith or name, feels safe, respected and fully at home.”

“I know Dearborn Heights and all of Senate District 2 as a welcoming community, and I am running a campaign on the issues that unite us, and to reject all forms of hate that divide us,” Alawieh said.

Alawieh reported the incident to Dearborn Heights law enforcement.

Michael Guzowski, the city’s chief of police, said his department is investigating a reported destruction of property incident at an office building on Van Born Road.

“This is an active investigation, and we are reviewing all available evidence to determine what occurred,” Guzowski said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Dearborn Heights Police Department at 313-277-6770.

cmauger@detroitnews.com

Minnesotans could see northern lights on May 14 and 15 as the natural spectacle will be visible through several northern states.

The best time to look for the aurora borealis is between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Space Weather Prediction Center.

Showers and thunderstorms are predicted in the early evening in St. Cloud, but skies should clear somewhat before the northern lights show would begin, according to the NOAA forecast.

There could be more auroras to come this weekend as well, as the geomagnetic activity that makes the lights viewable is predicted to continue through May 16.

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Here’s what to know about catching the northern lights.

When will the northern lights be viewable?

People in several U.S. states may get chances to see the aurora display on May 14 and 15. The best times to view the lights are generally between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, according to NOAA, though this can vary significantly by location and as weather and visibility forecasts are updated.

This time around, geomagnetic activity is expected to peak between 11 p.m. and 2 a.m. local time, according to the forecast, which could trigger moderate geomagnetic storms that make the auroras viewable farther south.

More up-to-date forecasts can be found on NOAA’S Aurora Dashboard.

Which states can see the northern lights?

How far and wide the auroras can clearly be seen will depend on whether the geomagnetic storm reaches a G1 to G2 (mild to moderate) or G3 (strong) level and the weather in your location.

Though Canada is getting the best, most intense viewing this time around, the states listed below will have at least a chance of catching a glimpse, according to NOAA’S forecast map.

• Washington
• Idaho
• Montana
• North Dakota
• Minnesota
• Michigan
• Wisconsin

What are the northern lights, aka aurora borealis?

The northern lights are a luminous glow seen around the magnetic poles of the Northern and Southern hemispheres, according to the University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute. Known for creating ribbons of colorful light in the night sky, the aurora borealis are polar lights, or aurora polaris, that appear in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Southern Hemisphere has its own polar lights known as the southern lights, or aurora australis, which create their own dazzling display.

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Put simply, auroras are a result of the sun interacting with the Earth’s atmosphere. A collision between electrically charged particles from the sun and gases in Earth’s atmosphere produces a series of minuscule flashes that appear like moving lights in the sky. The charged particles are pulled toward the North and South poles due to Earth’s magnetic field.

While that magnetic field usually protects the Earth from solar winds, the winds can occasionally get strong enough to bypass the field, allowing particles and gases in the magnetosphere to interact and generate the colorful displays, according to the Geophysical Institute and the Canadian Space Agency.

Tips for viewing the northern lights

The top tip for getting the best view of the northern lights is finding a dark spot away from light pollution. Space.com recommends finding a location as far as possible from city lights and heading out there as soon as the sky gets dark. Then, it’s a waiting game.

Find a north-facing view with a clear horizon and exercise patience, as the lights often come in waves, said Space.com. You can also download apps to track aurora forecasts based on your location, such as “My Aurora Forecast & Alerts.”

A bill requiring pornography websites to conduct age checks before granting access is headed to Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe.

Commercial websites and platforms must already verify that users are at least 18 if more than a third of their content is sexually explicit as part of a rule enforced by Missouri Attorney General Catherine Hanaway since December.

The bill, sponsored by Republican state Rep. Sherri Gallick of Belton, would codify that rule in state law, requiring websites to use third-party age verification providers.

“One of the things that was really compelling to me is that a lot of people growing up in today’s age look at a phone or they look at a computer, and they think that is reality,” Gallick told The Independent. “It’s very demeaning to women and to children.”

Sites that don’t comply would be subject to civil penalties, including fines up to $10,000 per day in violation of the law and an additional $250,000 if at least one minor accessed sexually explicit content. Sites could be charged $10,000 per violation of a provision prohibiting age verification providers from retaining users’ identifiable information.

The House passed the bill 112-25 Wednesday, May 13, with 20 Democrats and 5 Republicans in opposition and 11 Democrats voting “present.” The Senate passed the bill 32-0 on Tuesday, May 12, sending it back to the House for approval of a minor amendment.

The bill got initial House approval last year but was dropped from the calendar before getting a formal vote due to a challenge in the U.S. Supreme Court to a similar Texas law.