New Semester at McGill University Starts off with Pro-Palestine Demonstration

The fall semester at McGill University took off on a note of activism, protest and demands, with hundreds of students participating in a walkout of classes.

Students were protesting the administration’s investment policies and their crackdown on pro-Palestine student protests. The University and pro-Palestine students have been at odds for months now, heightened since April when the McGill Gaza Solidarity Encampment was first set up. This is the first major protest since the dismantling of the encampment in early July.

Many first-year students were present and took part in the demonstration. After standing in front of the administration building, students flooded into the engineering building occupying it until security arrived.

The lower field, which had been closed since the site had been cleared of all tents, fences and other improvised infrastructure, was opened by the crowd. Some were seen tearing out the newly installed grass, in a clear sign of disobedience to the installed banners and boards prohibiting access until the ground had settled. Students represented the majority of those present, but teachers were also present.

“I stand with you as a part of a large collective. A large group of professors in various faculties, disciplines, ranks, ages and backgrounds who are calling for the end of genocide,” said Rula Jurdi, professor of Islamic studies at McGill University. "Understanding and shaping the world you live in means moving outside the doors of your classroom to the social, human and intellectual spaces of the campus."

McGill security was following the protest closely, however, the crowd only dispersed when law enforcement came on the property and stood near the group that immediately left the premises. Whilst no confrontation occurred, it is clear that tensions are high and that the stage for student demonstrations this semester has been set.