Premier Doug Ford denounced a protest on the York University campus on Nov. 20, led by Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA), a student-run campus group.
The protest, which took place at Vari Hall on York University’s Keele campus, interrupted a school-sanctioned panel discussion by Reservists on Duty, a non-profit organization established by Israeli Defence Force (IDF) veterans.
From videos posted online of Wednesday’s protest, a crowd can be seen in the campus hallway. They can be heard chanting “Viva, viva intefadeh,” a phrase referring to the Palestinian uprising that began in 1987 and lasted four years.
Moe Alqasem, a fourth-year biomedical science student and member of SAIA York said the protest was initially against the invitation of IDF soldiers scheduled to speak on campus.
Alqasem said their aim was to “peacefully protest the event and signal our discontent of having soldiers of an army that is guilty of war crimes on our campus.
Through a tweet posted by Ford on Thursday afternoon, he said he was “shocked by the vile hatred that was on display last night at York University.”
Members of SAIA are not satisfied with the responses of Ford and other politicians towards the protest, claiming false accusations about the protest were thrown around about the group’s intentions.
“They automatically took the line of accusing advocates of being anti-Semitic without actually looking at what happened on the ground.” – Moe Alaqasem, fourth-year biomedical science student at York University
Days after the protest, on Nov. 24, SAIA released a statement detailing their reasons behind the rally.
According to the release, SAIA says the Israeli soldiers scheduled to speak on campus were promoting racism and violence.
Prior to organizing the protest, members of SAIA expressed their discomfort with the visit of these soldiers but said they did not receive an appropriate response from York’s administration.
“We were left with no choice as human rights advocates but to organize a rally where we demonstrate solidarity with the Palestinian people who are currently under attack in Gaza by the Israeli army,” the statement says.
A member of SAIA who does not wish to be named, expressed her disappointment in the York University security and the Toronto Police Service for their failure to keep their protestors safe.
“They should be disgusted with themselves for their failure in standing up for the safety of Canadian students, and for using their large platforms to spread lies and defame student organizations,” SAIA member says.
The issue of Palestine and Israel is traced back to the establishment of the Israeli state after World War II. World leaders felt the Jewish people needed a state of their own after the events of the Holocaust.
The current area where Israel is located was chosen because according to the Hebrew Bible, it is the birthplace of Judaism.
However, Palestinians and their allies claim that Palestinian land was stolen and allocated to become the state of Israel. As a result, fighting and contention has plagued the region and the diaspora for decades.
In a statement released by York University president and vice-chancellor Rhonda Lenton, she said the high tension at the protest resulted in some verbal and physical confrontations.
“Together with York’s faculty, staff and students, I am deeply disappointed by the behaviour that was on display.” – Rhonda Lenton, York University president and vice-chancellor
Lenton said the university is in the process of determining if any hate speech, harassment, threats or discrimination occurred.
“The fact that external groups were on campus last night for the sole purpose of fomenting conflict should be especially disturbing to everyone at York,” the statement reads.
Members of York University Jewish group, Hillel York, said that creating a bridge between the Palestinian and Jewish community on campus is something they have long advocated for, but events such as the protest are not helping in doing so.
Anna Kissin, director of the group, said the protest shows the disinterest of SAIA in creating such bridges.
Claiming there are many ways to promote peace between Israelis and Palestinians that do not include calls for violent uprisings, Kissin said “there continues to be a hostile environment created by certain student clubs and unions around Jewish student support for the Jewish state.”
While no evidence has surfaced showing that members of SAIA engaged in anti-Semitic or violent behaviour in the rally, according to the statement made, SAIA say they oppose all forms of oppression, including anti-Semitism. This is outlined in their mission statement.
Claiming that members of the Jewish Defence League (JDL) were the main instigators of violence during the protest, a group that has been banned by York University, SAIA says they were ignored by police and security when they asked to remove members of the JDL.
York University claims that strategies will be developed to foster a more productive dialogue around future issues in the statement they released.
SAIA is to follow up with York University administration to ensure those responsible for the source of violence during the protest are held accountable.
They ended their statement by saying, “we will continue to educate the York community on the Palestinian struggle for freedom and we will continue to resist attempts to silence and intimidate us. We will continue working in solidarity with other oppressed groups, recognizing that our liberties are bound together.”
Feature image from file.
