Concordia Stifling Student Democracy?

The University is currently investigating Concordia Student Union. This comes after the CSU held a historic vote on BDS which passed with a supermajority. The University claims that the space booked by the CSU was misused and unsafe for public attendance. The CSU hit back with a cease and desist against the university and has since regained booking privileges for their upcoming elections. I brought on Ali Salman to speak on this developing story as he was there present at the SGM.

In this interview, Ali Salman, who is a part of the Board of Governors, discusses a significant event in student activism at Concordia University. The conversation focuses on a historic Special General Meeting (SGM) on January 29th, where a vote on a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) resoluton was held. The SGM, which reached double quorum with over 1,000 attendees, resulted in a 93% vote in favour of the BDS motion. Ali highlights that the last time a similar SGM was held quorum was barely reached. In fact organizers for this SGM were concerned about reaching quorum as well but the turnout proved that BDS was still front and centre in people’s hearts.

Ali highlights the level of organization and preparation for the meeting, which ensured its smooth running despite the large turnout. He emphasizes the importance of this vote as a demonstration of student democracy. However, he also criticizes Concordia University’s response, particularly its claim of an unsafe environment at the SGM and its subsequent investigation into the event. Ali argues that the university’s concern about safety is unfounded, pointing out that students wore masks to protect themselves from potential doxing, not to hide illicit activity.

Further, Ali expresses frustration with Concordia’s response to the BDS movement, suggesting that the university is trying to delegitimize the vote because it challenges its alignment with colonial powers. Despite this, he is optimistic that the BDS motion will be taken up by the Board of Governors, as it is a clear mandate from the student body. He concludes by asserting that the BDS movement has strong support among various student factions at Concordia, not just the CSU, and remains a prominent issue on campuses across North America.