A new poll suggests that nearly half of Canadians oppose the pro-Palestinian encampments that have sprung up on some university campuses.
Only 31 per cent of people responding to the Léger poll last weekend said they supported the encampments, while 48 per cent were against the protests. About one in five (21 per cent) said they didn’t know.
The results in Quebec are roughly the same as the Canadian average: 32 per cent are for, 51 per cent are against and 18 per cent have no opinion.
The camps started more than a week ago. The students occupying them are demanding that their universities end their investments in Israeli companies.
McGill University has condemned the protests on its campus. The university and the Quebec government asked the police to intervene, but the police did not react. Last week, a judge denied a request for an injunction to evict the protesters.
McGill University reps are in talks with students at the encampment. On Wednesday, in a statement to CityNews, they said they were not commenting, “out of respect for the ongoing discussions.”
The small tent city on the campus’ lower field may get in the way of the upcoming convocation planned for the end of the month, usually outside in the same area.
McGill says as convocation is a time for students to mark their accomplishments, “the university will proceed with its ceremonies, so that our graduates have the opportunity they deserve to celebrate this festive occasion.”
Ceremonies will take place from May 28 to June 5, as planned they say, with more information to follow.
The camps at the University of Ottawa and the University of Toronto received less attention.
Meanwhile, in the United States, at Columbia University and the University of California, Los Angeles, students clashed with police and barricaded themselves inside campus buildings.
In the Léger poll, 44 percent of respondents said they thought the encampments should be dismantled, “because they could pose a threat to campus safety and that of students.”
On the other hand, 33 per cent believe that they should be uninstalled “if and only if the demonstrators express anti-Semitic opinions or spread any form of hate speech.”
Only 23 per cent of people said protests should be accepted as a form of free speech and should not be repressed.
Respondents were also asked if they had heard any anti-Semitic comments since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began in October.
Nearly three-quarters, or 73 per cent, said no, while 17 per cent said yes and nine per cent said they didn’t know.
Earlier this week, political leaders condemned some of the protesters’ actions. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he supports free speech, but does not support actions that put other students at risk.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford called for an end to the encampments, saying Monday that “the university needs to evacuate these people.”
Support for the protesters is strongest among young people who took part in the vote: 45 per cent of respondents aged 18 to 35 said they supported the encampments, while two-thirds of those over 55 said they did not support events.
Older people who were surveyed were more likely to say they felt the encampments should be dismantled.
The results of the survey, conducted among 1,519 people, cannot have a margin of error because online surveys are not considered truly random samples.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews