Article content The human suffering in the Middle East has brought enormous pain to people worldwide, including at McGill University. Especially for members of our community who have personal ties to the region, it has been a time of grief, anger and anxiety. Diverse, often opposing viewpoints, have given rise to fierce debates.
People within and outside academic communities have gathered at universities to amplify their views. To educate, to learn, to research, universities must welcome debate and challenge convention. And that is precisely why protests must be roundly protected, regardless of the cause they support.
But what we are seeing on many campuses goes beyond protest. Since April 27, McGill’s downtown campus has been the site of a growing pro-Palestinian encampment occupied by hundreds of mostly masked persons who say they will not leave until the university cuts ties with Israel. Through discussions in good faith with the encampment participants, we have tried to reach a mutual understanding, including by offering to: Participants in encampments elsewhere have seen such offers as important steps and have reached agreements with university administrations.
Yet at McGill, the occupants continue to eschew meaningful conversation. The participants are asking, primarily, for divestment and severance from organizations — including academic ones — because of where they are situated. Doing so would compromise McGill’s mission and ability to create a healthy, safe e.
