McGill University says it “requested police assistance” late Monday afternoon to help de-escalate and dismantle an encampment that was set up on the lower field of the downtown campus on Saturday in support of Gaza.
In a statement issued on Tuesday morning, McGill said they proceeded through all steps necessary in their protocols used for demonstration on Monday.
“We informed participants that this encampment was not authorized and gave them time to gather their belongings and leave the premises. However, most have chosen to remain,” the statement reads.
Dozens of tents have been pitched on the lawn of McGill’s downtown campus and the activists say they have no intention of dismantling them until McGill, as well as Concordia University, divest from all companies which they claim are “profiting from genocide.”
Around 60 to 70 tents were in place on Monday.
The university said they were engaged in dialogue with representatives of McGill students.
“As we have failed to reach a resolution, university leadership decided to take the final step in our protocol.”
Representatives of the SPVM who have expertise in resolving these kinds of situations have now started their own process, the university said.
McGill says they have been communicating with police since the start of the encampment over the weekend.
“Throughout, our goal has been to ensure the security of all, including encampment participants. The police understand our values as an institution and our commitment to protecting free expression and assembly within the bounds protected by the law and our policies. The safety and wellbeing of all our students and staff is our paramount concern.”
McGill has said many of the activists, if not the majority, are not members of the school community and that it had seen video of some people using “unequivocally anti-Semitic language and intimidating behaviour,” but it did not provide further details.
Pro-Palestinian protesters have also set up an encampment at the University of British Columbia’s Point Grey Campus, and the University of Toronto and the University of Ottawa have both warned that setting up encampments on campus will not be tolerated.
The encampments, which come just ahead of the end of final exams at McGill on Tuesday, follow a wave of similar protests across campuses in the United States linked to the Israel-Hamas war.
Encampment members have also demanded McGill divest from Israeli companies it says are “complicit in the occupation of Palestine.” They also want the school to cut academic ties with Israeli institutions.
UBC officials say they are monitoring the situation there and are reminding protesters to follow the university’s policy and the law while taking protest action.
B.C. Premier David Eby says student leaders and the administration should balance the need for free speech on campus with the need to foster safe spaces, especially for Jewish students during a time where they need additional support to feel safe.
-With files from The Canadian Press