Foundation News Laidlaw Foundation’s Statement on the Criminalization of Student Encampments Aldeli Albán Reyna Foundation News 5 mins read June 1, 2024 / News / Foundation News / Laidlaw Foundation’s Statement on the Criminalization of Student Encampments Student movements have a strong history of being at the forefront of social justice and bringing about meaningful change in the fight for human rights. In 1926, the first national student association in Canada was established. In 1969, the biggest student demonstration in Canada took place in Montréal at Sir George Williams University, where students protested ongoing anti-Black racism. Throughout the 60s, students led civil disobedience and actions supporting civil rights movements, called for an end to the apartheid system in South Africa in the 80s, opposed the war in Iraq in the early 2000s, protested ongoing tuition hikes, and supported Black uprisings, amongst many more. It is no surprise to see student solidarity once again with Palestine and its diaspora. As such, the number of student encampments continues to grow across the country, with 18 ongoing*: Concordia University Dalhousie University McGill University University of Alberta University of British Columbia University of British Columbia Okanagan University of Calgary University of Guelph University of Manitoba Université de Montréal University of Ottawa University of Toronto Université de Québec à Montréal University of Victoria University of Waterloo University of Windsor Vancouver Island University Western University * Recently, McMaster University and the Ontario Tech University reached mutual agreements with their respective administrations to disclose and divest. A stark contrast to l’Université de Laval and York University encampments, which were dismantled by large police forces and arrested students at ULaval. As the genocide on Palestine rages on –with a few rulings from the International Court of Justice in January, March, and May, without a permanent ceasefire– many students have chosen to act and established encampments at their universities across the province, the country, and the world. Students and their communities are demanding for transparent disclosure of all university investments, divest from Israeli apartheid, end partnerships with corporations complicit in genocide, and call for a permanent and indefinite ceasefire. As a youth funder that grants to Black, Indigenous, and racialized young people who are systemically pushed out of the education system, overcriminalized, and overrepresented in the child welfare systems, Laidlaw Foundation is extremely concerned about the criminalization of students exercising their right to freedom of expression, academic freedom, and their right to express solidarity without fear of reprisals. We continue to strongly object to undue influence and pressure exercised by donors and philanthropists who are pressuring universities, cultural institutions, and other institutions to restrain debate. Not too long ago, the University of Manitoba (UofM) was under this type of influence when Ernest Randy, who gifted UoM their largest donation, exerted his power to pressure the administration to condemn the medical school’s valedictorian speech calling for a ceasefire, humanitarian aid to Gaza and an end to the killing of Palestinian medical professionals and journalists. The notion that external forces can dictate narratives within academic and cultural spaces raises serious concerns about academic freedom and intellectual autonomy. We remain alarmed by the systemic and excessive silencing of young voices across campuses and schools in Canada. We find the trend by educational institutions to punish those who oppose genocides disturbing and one that infringes on students’ right to engage peacefully in demonstrations on their campuses. We also echo the Ontario Federation of Labour’s (OFL) and Amnesty International Canada calls on administrations, such as the University of Toronto to negotiate in good faith, without threats of police intervention, and to preserve human rights. Thanks to the tiring work of our grantees and the communities we invest in, we know all too well the issue of the “school-to-prison” pipeline. By choosing police repression, criminalization, and a carceral mindset, these post-secondary institutions are feeding right into this trope that overwhelmingly impacts Black, Indigenous, and racialized students. As OFL put it, “[f]or Canada’s largest university to decide unilaterally when the debate should end, and when police repression should begin, is a betrayal of the values we claim to uphold.” Most recently, retired Chief Justice J. Michael MacDonald provided a 200-page report reviewing the open letter to the Lincoln Alexander School of Law’s administration from Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) law students supporting Palestinian rights. He concluded that the students did not breach the TMU Student Code of Non-Academic Conduct. “[T]he students’ participation in the letter, when placed in its appropriate context, was nonetheless a valid exercise of student expression and therefore protected under the University’s Statement on Freedom of Speech”. We will not remain silent in times of ongoing genocides in Palestine, Congo, Haïti, and Sudan, and have joined the call from Funders for a Ceasefire Now to call for an immediate ceasefire, unimpeded access to humanitarian aid, stop funding weapons and adhere to international humanitarian and human rights laws. We urge universities and post-secondary institutions to refrain from using policing, involving courts through injunctions, and serving eviction notices to students involved in encampments. Instead, we call on educational institutions to listen, support, and meaningfully engage their students. Laidlaw Foundation believes it is crucial to uphold the principles of freedom of expression, academic freedom, and the right to express solidarity without fear of reprisals. We remain steadfast in our dedication to fostering an environment where young people are engaged and empowered in decision-making and to advocate for systems change. We stay inspired and encouraged by youth-led growing movements demanding a better world. Share This Article
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