On August 30, students walked out of classes to protest McGill’s continued complicity in the genocide of Palestinians, and demand the university’s divestment from tied to the Israeli government. Students gathered before the James Administration Building at 1 p.m., participating in chants and listening to speeches from walkout organizers. They addressed the university administration’s refusal to accede with student requests calling for an end to all remaining financial connections with institutions that back Israel.
“We will not stop until we get justice for the people of Palestine,” an SPHR organizer announced to the crowd, as students chanted back to administration.
In addition to Solidarity for Palestinain Human Rights (SPHR) McGill, five total student contingents from across Montreal congregated at different parts of the McGill campus that day: SPHR Concordia, Law Students 4 Palestine, World Islamic and Middle East Studies Students’ Association (WIMESSA), Independent Jewish Voices at McGill,andCegep4Palestine.
Flyers for the walkout were handed out on campus in the days leading up to the protest. On the morning of August 30, student protesters entered classrooms near the walkout meeting spot, informing students of their goals. Sophie* recounted her experience of the classroom interruption: “I felt the spokesperson delivered their message very clearly and effectively. They related the Palestine conflict to issues pertaining to the school, such as using the money they are currently investing to pay the TAs. That resonated with me.”
After thirty minutes, the group proceeded to the MacDonald Engineering Building, filing onto the second floor. They focused on the Faculty of Engineering ’s complicity in the killing of Palestinians, citing their funding for weapons manufacturers such as Lockheed Martin and Bell Flight, both of which sponsor the department’s computational fluid dynamics laboratory. Protesters then exited to the steps of the MacDonald Engineering Building entrance. Walkout organizers brought professors from the McGill Institute of Islamic Studies, who recited poems and expressed their solidarity with the movement.
The protest concluded at the Lower Field, which had been closed off to students following the dismantlement of the Palestine Solidarity Encampment on July 10. After removing the warning tape, protest organizers stood before students to describe the fate of the encampment and McGill’s use of the private security firm, SIRCO, to remove the tents and the residing protesters.
At the Lower Field, protesters began to pick up and toss the sod McGill had planted to recondition the field after the encampment’s removal. Speakers announced their intention to take back the campus, urging students to bring this message into their faculties and classes. Security guards, who had kept in close proximity to the protesters throughout the walkout, then started to close in on the Lower Field. The walkout concluded at approximately 3:00 p.m, and McGill restored the field to its original condition shortly after.
McGill’s Campus and Public Safety released an announcement discussing the events that unfolded during the walkout, noting that the “protest and associated activities did not cross the bounds of law or policy until” the protesters’ disruption of classes while in the MacDonald Engineering Building, and the removal of grass on the Lower Field. These actions, McGill claims, violated the university’s policies: they further stated that they would investigate participants and subject them to disciplinary action. They reiterated that protests are a legitimate part of campus life, when peaceful, but admitted to adding extra security measures on campus that day to monitor the walkout. Additionally, the university called the events on the Lower Field acts of vandalism, stating “Vandalism is not a legitimate exercise of one’s freedom of expression. McGill condemns such acts unequivocally.”
With regards to McGill’s first claim about class disruptions, Sophie says she “felt [the protesters] went about speaking to the class in a respectful way, and by no means disrupting.” She believes the student protesters’ statements did not pose a violation to university principles.
Amy*, a McGill student who attended the walkout, commented on the importance of staying resilient and bringing support for the cause. “We are showing McGill that the movement for Palestinian liberation is here to stay, as long as out tuition is being used to fund a genocide being conducted by an illegal occupation,” they said.
On the dismantlement of the encampment, Amy remarked that the administration “has shown that they will stop at nothing to repress the voices of its students.”
Despite being disappointed in the way administration has dealt with protesters’ demands, they remained hopeful on the growing pro-Palestine community on-campus.
McGill student activists have consistently been at the forefront for social change, with their success in pressuring the university to divest from South African apartheid as a critical example. Even though McGill avoids productive negotiation and leaves the question of reaching an agreement open ended, protesters have no intention of straying away from their goals.
“There has definitely been anger at the atrocities taking place and the administration’s dismissive response so far, but there is also a sense of love between the community and a deep respect for the Palestinians who have been experiencing the genocide,” Amy said.
*All names are changed to preserve anonymity.