Student activists called on Carleton University to divest from companies with business interests in Israel and asked about the university’s stance on peaceful protests at a Carleton University senate meeting on May 3.
Members from Students for Justice in Palestine and Independent Jewish Voices Carleton (IJV) held signs at the meeting reading “Carleton you’re complicit” and “stop funding arms companies” with their hands painted red in silent protest.
This comes after the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) passed a divestment policy stance on April 8, alleging the university’s investment in multiple companies linked to Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian territory.
Nir Hagigi, student senator and IJV Carleton president, asked the senate whether it had since taken any steps to investigate the university’s investment priorities.
Interim president Jerry Tomberlin said the university is aware of CUSA’s motion, but did not mention if Carleton was considering taking divestment action.
“We are discussing all those things,” Tomberlin said at the meeting. “It’s complicated. Our world is very tied together, so taking all those actions is complicated.”
As protesters continue to establish encampments on university campuses across the country, Hagigi also asked the senate if Carleton is committed to protecting students’ freedom of expression and assembly “if [Carleton] students do decide to escalate matters.”
“Freedom of expression, freedom of speech, freedom to protest are core values that we all share,” Tomberlin said.
“However another core value is the respect for the need for safety for our own community. Any kind of protest has to be recognizing the respect for other people who have other opinions, and also, and most importantly, the health and safety and well-being of our community, which we are all responsible for,” he continued.
Carleton erected metal fencing blocking access to the academic quad last Monday — the same day an encampment at the University of Ottawa began.
A university spokesperson told the Charlatan in an email on Wednesday that the fencing was for planned construction projects, while university provost Pauline Rankin stated the fencing is in place ahead of tree removal.
“The fencing is there because we have some trees that have broken limbs and we have dead trees, so we have to clear that brush out and make sure it’s safe,” Rankin said at the meeting.
Meanwhile, the uOttawa encampment is entering its seventh day as protesters call on uOttawa to disclose its investments and to divest from companies with ties to the Israeli military. More than 50 tents and up to 200 protesters have been present on uOttawa’s Tabaret Lawn since Monday, the Fulcrum reported.
While McGill University requested police assistance for a pro-Palestinian encampment on its campus on Tuesday, officers have not stepped in to clear the encampment as it enters its ninth day.
Protesters at the University of Toronto set up an encampment on Thursday morning within King’s College Circle, an area the university had gated off earlier in the week. About 120 protesters are inside the fencing and roughly 1,000 more supporters gathered around the gated area on Friday, the Varsity reported.
Featured image provided by Nir Hagigi.
