Content warning: this story discusses violence and death in the Israel-Palestine conflict.
Hundreds of McGill students left their classes in protest of Israel's bombing of Gaza on Wednesday (Oct 25). They called for a ceasefire abroad and solidarity at home in an event that ended with around a dozen students blockading the entrance to the James Administration building.
The walkout, which took place in tandem with walkouts at campuses across Canada and the U.S., comes as the death toll in Gaza nears 7,000. As well as calling more broadly for an end to the "genocide" in Gaza, students called on McGill to do more to condemn Israel's military campaign and end investment in arms companies.
What condemnation has come from the administration has largely been directed at students. In particular, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights McGill (SPHR McGill), a group that organized Wednesday’s walkout, has been at the centre of controversy on campus because of a now-deleted social media post, in which SPHR McGill described the events of Oct. 7 as a “heroic attack against the occupation.” The post, which was released before all the details of the attack had come to light, references the taking of "over 30 hostages" but not the killing of civilians.
Following a student petition with almost 3,000 signatures, McGill Provost Christopher Manfredi denounced the post and called on the undergraduate students' society (SSMU) “to revoke permission for this club to use the McGill name and take whatever other measures might be necessary to rectify the situation.”
SPHR McGill released a subsequent statement holding Israel responsible for the escalation of violence, and saying that “a population living under siege and occupation has no option but to resist.” A spokesperson for the group said on Wednesday that "nobody here is celebrating violence," but are calling for the "liberation of Palestine, the ending of the occupation that has lasted for 75 years."
This isn't the first time Israel-Palestine has become a flashpoint on campus. Last year, McGill threatened to revoke funding to SSMU after it passed a resolution in line with the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. The resolution also asked for McGill's condemnation of "surveillance or smear campaigns against Palestinian and pro-Palestine students," which students allege take place on campus.
During the past two weeks, student groups across Canada and the U.S. have faced harsh consequences over statements in support of Palestine. Harvard students whose groups signed onto a letter calling for a ceasefire and end to Israel's "occupation" were doxxed; several lost job offers as a result. York University is threatening to dissolve its big three student unions over their Palestinian solidarity statement, and is calling on union executives to resign.
At Wednesday's walkout, many students expressed mixed feelings about SPHR McGill's initial social media posts. But they said the retaliation from the Israeli military had changed the situation – and now they want the administration to act with urgency to condemn Israel's violence.
"I agree that during this time, we have to hold a lot of grief for all 1,400 Israeli people who were killed and have been held hostage," said a fourth-year physics and geology student. "I don't agree with every single statement SPHR has ever made. But I think it's pretty clearly gone beyond self-defense at this point, on Israel's part."
Most students asked to remain anonymous out of fear of doxxing. At least one McGill student is currently profiled on Canary Mission, which gathers information on pro-Palestine activists so they can be surveilled and denied opportunities.
But one student chose to speak on the record. Fatima Khalladi said she's been overwhelmed by the death of ten family members in the past two weeks, who were struck by Israeli bombs while sitting in their homes, seeking medical help, or trying to flee the violence.
"Whenever I close my eyes, all I see [are] the bodies of my dead family members," she said. "All I want to do is go to school. I just want to go to school, and I can't."
Fatima said McGill's response only made things harder. "Like any other student, [I] honestly just want to be safe and have my degree. And in no way did the statements that McGill published make me feel at all safe. I felt personally targeted as a Palestinian."
When reached for comment, McGill’s Media Relations Office stated that "members of the McGill community are free to express themselves and to associate within the bounds set by our university’s Statement of Principles Concerning Freedom of Expression and Peaceful Assembly, Charter of Students’ Rights, and Policy on Academic Freedom. Our focus at the moment is on maintaining respectful discourse and upholding the wellbeing of our campus community.”
SSMU did not respond to a request for comment.
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