Ontario Premier Doug Ford says encampments set up on university campuses by pro-Palestinian protesters “need to move.”
Ford says he’s getting messages from parents expressing concerns that their kids will be harassed or bullied because of the encampments, which have cropped up on several campuses in recent weeks.
The premier says some of what he’s seen and heard about the protests is “unacceptable,” and universities need to “move them on.”
Meanwhile, the University of Toronto says it sees “a way forward” after meeting with student protesters behind a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus.
The encampment set up in an area known as King’s College Circle last Thursday is calling on the university to disclose ties with the Israeli government and divest from Israeli companies.
Though the university initially gave protesters a deadline of 10 p.m. last Thursday to leave, administrators later said they wouldn’t remove the encampment if its activities remained peaceful.
Sandy Welsh, the university’s vice-provost of students, said in a statement Monday morning that members of the administration met with student representatives for the encampment over the weekend, and the discussions “have been constructive.”
She says representatives and administrators are working together to address concerns about health and safety, as well as reports of threatening or hateful language. Modifications were made to fencing in the area of the protest to “enhance safety,” she added, while the school hopes to bring in temporary sanitation improvements as well.
“We remain concerned about large numbers of the broader public coming to campus for rallies and marches,” Welsh wrote. “There have been several incidents of particular concern, including reported assaults and hate speech.
“It is not clear how many of these involve individuals inside the encampment or members of the public. We have forwarded four reports to Project Resolute, a Toronto Police Service initiative to fight antisemitism and Islamophobia, for further investigation.”
Pro-Palestinian activists have also set up tents at McGill University in Montreal, the University of Ottawa, McMaster University in Hamilton and the University of British Columbia campus in Vancouver.