University of Toronto not clearing pro-Palestinian encampment for now

The University of Toronto says it will be letting an encampment set up early Thursday morning by pro-Palestinian protesters to stay for now as long as "activities remain peaceful."

Protesters breached a fenced area and moved in at around 4 a.m., setting up a few dozen tents on the lawn at King's College Circle. They vowed to stay there until their demands were met.

Pro-Palestinian protesters talk at an encampment set up on the University of Toronto campus on Thursday, May 2, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

The university had erected fencing to prevent an encampment there, but the protesters got around it. Several police vehicles quickly arrived on scene, but no clashes were reported throughout the day despite some counterprotesters showing up.

The protesters are calling for the university to divest from companies with military ties to Israel and cut ties with some Israeli universities.

 

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Leaflets distributed to protesters Thursday morning laid out a number of expectations for peaceful protest, including no structures of any sort, no hate speech, and no disruption of scheduled university activities.

"U of T's grounds and buildings are private property. Unauthorized activities such as encampments or the occupation of University buildings are considered trespassing," the leaflets read.

The university also stated in the leaflets that protesting is not permitted after 10 p.m.

In a statement to the organizers Thursday evening, Sandy Welsh, the university’s Vice Provost (students), acknowledged that the protest had been mostly peaceful and that organizers were maintaining an open line of communication.

“Our property is private. You do not have our permission to be here after 10 p.m. In our communications with a representative of your group today, we reiterated our request that you leave campus by 10 p.m.,” Welsh said.

“However, if your activities remain peaceful, we do not intend to remove you from campus this evening.”

In her statement, Welsh said their safety concerns are increasing as the number of protesters had grown throughout the day. She pointed out that the university was worried that most demonstrators might not be U of T students or members of the school community.

“We have asked you, on several occasions, to identify a U of T student liaison and you have not provided one,” Welsh said.

She then informed organizers they will see a higher number of campus safety special constables nearby and noted that the Toronto police was monitoring the protest.

“Please encourage others to remain peaceful. We ask that you be mindful of noise tonight as we have students and staff living in residence nearby,” Welsh said.

“Hate speech, threats, and other discriminatory language or behaviour do not constitute peaceful protest.”

Earlier, Toronto police told CP24 that UofT had not asked for their help. Police reiterated Thursday evening that the university was leading the planning for protests.

“We are in contact with them but our assistance has not been requested, at 10 p.m. or otherwise,” a Toronto police spokesperson said.

Erin MacKey of the group UofT Occupy for Palestine, told CP24 that her group decided to start an encampment after their occupation of the president's office failed to yield results.

"The University of Toronto has divested from South African apartheid, they have divested from fossil fuels. So this is not something new. Students have been making this demand of this university since 2006," MacKey said. "A few weeks ago we held an occupation of our president’s office and we had a meeting with the president and were given absolute non-answers. We were not having the conversation in good faith and there was no negotiation so we decided to escalate."

McKey told CP24 that investments in companies with ties to the Israeli military amount to “complicity” in “ongoing genocide.”

The International Court of Justice is investigating whether Israel has committed acts of genocide during the war but has made no final determination. Israel, for its part, has rejected all allegations of wrongdoing.

University says academic boycotts 'counterproductive'

Last month UofT President Meric S. Gertler published a letter saying that the university supports students' right to peaceful protest, but would not comply with the group's demand that it sever ties with Israeli academic institutions.

"This demand is at odds with the University’s longstanding opposition to academic boycotts, dating back at least to the 1980s," Gertler wrote. "Such demands are antithetical to the University’s firm conviction that the best way to protect human rights is by staunchly defending and promoting academic freedom, freedom of expression, and the unfettered circulation of ideas within the global scholarly community."

He added that it is "inappropriate and, ultimately, counterproductive to single out academics working or studying in a particular country, and to hold them accountable for the actions or policies of their country’s government."

On the calls for divestment, Gertler noted that the university does not directly manage its pension funds and that its policy on divestments states that 'the University does not take positions on social or political issues apart from those directly pertinent to higher education and academic research.'"

In a statement Thursday, the university said the campus remains open and that protest is allowed as long as laws and rules are not violated

"The university respects the rights of members of our community to assemble and protest within the limits of the law and U of T policies, but they must not interfere with the ability of students, faculty, librarians and staff to learn, teach, research and work on our campuses, or disrupt or impede other university activities," the statement read.

It added that its preference "is to start with dialogue," but that protesters could face consequences for flouting the rules.

"Those who contravene university policy or the law risk the consequences set out in various laws and policies such as the Code of Student Conduct, which could include suspension," the statement said.

Pro-Palestinian encampments have cropped up at numerous universities in the U.S., along with several in Canada, such as McGill and UBC. Some protests in the U.S. have resulted in clashes with authorities, with some protesters refusing to leave until their demands are met and some police services responding by forcibly removing them.

Video posted to social media has shown encampment protesters barring Jewish students and staff from entering some U.S. campuses. No such incidents have been reported at UofT.

Hillel, the main Jewish student organization on campus, said in a statement that Jewish students on campus have been at the forefront of rising hate directed at Jews, and they expect the university to enforce its rules if required.

"While students have a right to protest, that right is neither unfettered nor absolute," Hillel Ontario's Chief Advancement Officer Jay Solomon said in a statement. "Those who come to campus to harass and intimidate Jewish students, faculty or staff should not be tolerated. We have watched with concern how quickly these situations can create a hateful, harassing, and intimidating atmosphere, and the university has a responsibility to act proactively to prevent this."

A Quebec judge on Wednesday rejected a request from Jewish students for an injunction to stop the encampment at McGill, citing concerns about free speech.

The campus protests are the latest incarnation of protests which have gone on for months around the Israel-Hamas war.

The war erupted after Hamas, a militant group deemed a terrorist organization by the Canadian government, killed some 1,200 people and seized around 240 captives in a surprise attack in Israel on Oct. 7. Israel responded with airstrikes and a ground offensive in Gaza, killing more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry.

- With files from CP24 Reporter Courtney Heels and The Canadian Press