Faculty join U of T encampment protest

Pro-Palestinian student protesters entered the third day of their encampment demonstration at the University of Toronto Saturday and saw some faculty joining them in support.

Robyn Maynard, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto, was at the encampment Saturday supporting students.

She said there's a large number of University faculty there in solidarity.

"We feel it's really important that we can be here as witnesses, given the kinds of dangers some of the students have been exposed to," she said.

"It's also important to be here, because their demands are important....asking the University to divest from Israel," she said. Maynard said academic colleagues and students have been killed in Gaza and the university was destroyed.

She said the students will not leave until the school divests. Maynard pointed out that Brown University and Rutgers University have agreed to look at students demands, in confronting their own student protests.

Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza was launched after the militant group's attacks on Oct. 7. About 1,200 people in Israel, mostly civilians, were killed and around 250 people were taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

The Israeli offensive has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians, according to health officials in Gaza. The war has wreaked vast destruction and brought a humanitarian disaster with several thousand Palestinians in northern Gaza facing imminent famine, according to the United Nations.

Another protester, Ahmed Ayash, said he completed both his masters and PhD at the University of Toronto.

"[Students] believe in supporting this cause. I think that they're willing to stay for as long as it takes until U of T really understands that the students are serious," he said.

Since the encampment was set up Thursday, over 3,100 U of T alumni have signed a letter in support of the students.

Undergraduate student Baron Mackey says the school has divested after student outcry in the past. He pointed to the 2021 announcement that U of T would divest from fossil fuels.

"Hundreds of students and faculty have shown up," he said. Adding that the school is engaging in public messaging that is not painting an accurate picture of the encampment that has been "very peaceful."

"We take things day by day, hour by hour," he said.

By Saturday afternoon, a handful of counter-protesters appeared near the encampment.

School says it's concerned about 'use of language'

The university has said it's concerned about what it claims as reports of threats and other illegal activity but has so far not indicated it plans to remove the encampment.

"We have conveyed our expectations and shared our observations regarding actions that have contravened them, including lack of crowd control, health and safety risks, destruction of property, and use of language that is considered discriminatory, threatening or hateful," the university said in its latest statement to the U of T community on Friday.

Pro-Palestinian protestors play spike ball at the U of T encampment on May 4, 2024 (Aizick Grimman/CBC)

"We have made it clear that these activities fall outside of our policies and relevant law and are considered unauthorized on our private property."

The encampment — one of several established at Canadian university campuses in recent days — went up early Thursday morning after students said they breached the fence around an area on the downtown campus known as King's College Circle.

On Thursday, the university said the tents, banners and flags were a safety concern and it had asked the students to leave by 10 p.m. However, it said it would not remove the students if their activities remained peaceful.

The next day, the university said the protest had evolved and that it had received several questions and reports of "concerning language" being used in signs and chants.

Signs that could be seen on Saturday said "End the Genocide in Gaza" and "You Think an Encampment is More Offensive Than a Genocide?". Other signs included "Jews for a Free Palestine."

Hillel Ontario, Jewish academic group release statements

In response to the encampment, Hillel Ontario, an organization that describes itself as supporting Jewish campus life, said the protest is "entirely unacceptable."

"We are deeply disappointed by the lack of adequate response on the part of the university," said spokesperson Jay Solomon. He said the protestors are also creating a "hostile environment" and said they are chanting "hateful slogans."

The Network of Engaged Canadian Academics, an organization of Jewish academics, said faculty members are being "blacklisted" for their political views and said they are being targeted.