One of two York University picketers injured in a hit-and-run Friday says he ended up being driven some distance on the hood of a swearing man’s car.
Terry Conlin says that, after strikers put up a “safety barrier” across a roadway, a man pulled up in his car, got out, threw the barrier aside and began yelling.
After the irate man got back into his car, he demanded that picketers move, says Conlin.
“Then he accelerated, and not gently,” says Conlin.
“I buckled forward onto the hood of the car and he flew around the corner at incredible speed,” he adds.
Conlin says he remained on the hood of the car for hundreds of metres or more, before the man stopped the car and told him to get off.
“I thought I was gone,” he says. “If I had not been able to hold on, I don’t think I’d be talking to you.”
Conlin says he suffered a knee injury but did not go to a hospital.
He says a fellow picketer who was also hit did go to a hospital.
“I have no idea about the nature or extent of the injuries,” he said.
Paramedics said two picketers were struck around noon by a vehicle during a demonstration by teaching assistants and contract staff outside the university.
They said one man in his fifties was taken to hospital.
The vehicle fled the scene, according to police, who are now looking for a black four-door sedan.
Mamdouh Shoukri, York University’s president, called for patience and said his “thoughts are with (the injured) at this difficult time.”
“This unfortunate incident is a critical reminder to all community members of the need to be vigilant in respecting the picket line,” he said in a statement.
“Frustrations can escalate when faced with a temporary delay in entering or exiting our campuses,” he added.
Shoukri said that anyone experiencing problems at a picket line can call 416-650-8010.
He also urged anyone who witnessed the event to contact police at 416-808-1900.
York’s 3,700 teaching assistants and contract faculty are in the fourth day of a strike. Most classes at the university have been cancelled during the strike.
