Ryan Moore
News Editor
Featured images by Michael Zusev, Photo Editor
A coalition on campus took over the Student Centre and Vari Hall last week, demanding York be the first university in North America to divest from weapons manufacturers.
YU Divest is lobbying the Board of Governors to implement a policy that would prohibit these kinds of investments. While the university is currently only investing in one weapons company, there is nothing to prohibit York from adding more weapons investments next quarter.
“Academic institutions absolutely should not be investing in weapons,” says Ghada Sasa, YU Divest coalition spokesperson. “Other institutions already do that.”
There have been a number of initiatives taken on this year in order to progress the divestment platform in the boardrooms, according to Mithilen Mathipalan, president of the York Federation of Students.
Last semester, the YFS voted to pass a motion to include military divestment as a fundamental issues policy before voting to pass a motion to join the YU Divest coalition.
“In regards to our efforts with the university, the YFS is involved in lobbying a number of administrative bodies,” says Mathipalan. “We are currently working with students to formulate a concrete proposal to present to the Board of Governors for weapons divestment as a whole.”
Senior security officials supervised the event and confirmed the presence of both uniformed and non-uniformed security officers.
Mathipalan says they had met with York administration to plan the rally. The YFS was compelled to agree to a number of restrictions and requirements, given the assurance the Jewish Defence League would not be permitted on campus.
“So it is disturbing that the JDL was in the Student Centre attempting to harass and intimidate students,” says Mathipalan.
“We are currently in the process of investigating why racialized and Muslim students, in particular those who are women, are treated differently in regards to safety at York. We will be meeting with senior administrators in due time to formally raise these issues.”
Aldo Altomare, director of York Security Services, Department of Community Safety, maintains ensuring the safety of the community and all involved was the top priority throughout the protest and related events of February 4.
Hillel and Hasbara at York were both disturbed and embarrassed by the presence of the JDL, and emphasize they do not endorse, nor support JDL’s political positions.
There are some contradictions in the Jewish community over what the divestment campaign is, with the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center for Holocaust Studies reporting this as anti-Israeli, and Canadian Jewish News citing the protest as unrelated to Israel.
Members of Hillel and Hasbara were spread around the Student Centre observing the rally.
“It is certainly naïve to think the university’s administration will take these protests to heart,” says Rena Silver, political liaison of Hasbara at York. “In university, we are taught to do thorough research and never take anything at face value. Clearly, these protesters have not learned that lesson.”
Increasingly, the climate of post-secondary institutions, and York especially, is dictated by the commitment to social justice, Silver adds.
“This is a good thing, but only when you’re actively doing research. An individual who has informed themselves and understands the nuances of a conflict is not the same person at these protests.”
“If university politics is meant to be a microcosm of the real thing, then something is sorely amiss here. You will never see politicians red-faced and hoarse from screaming, not because there is nothing to be passionate about, but because nothing is ever that simple. It is ridiculous to believe that anything is ever so fervently one-sided.”
YU Divest is expected to release a list of endorsements over the next few weeks.
“There is no university administration that has taken stances prompted by similar student protests.”
Political science professor David McNally spoke at the protest.
“Universities have a mission to pursue social justice and the betterment of human life,” he says.
“There is no legitimate role for universities as investors in military corporations. YU Divest is to be commended for launching this urgent campaign.”
Student Action, the student union election slate, has endorsed the YU Divest campaign. The opposition slate, Lift YU wasn’t clear whether they support the campaign, stating, “We encourage student activism and strongly believe in a safe and supportive campus environment.” However, Lift YU VP Campaigns and Advocacy representative, Anthony Brum voiced support for military divestments during an Excalibur debate last week.
Lift YU wants to ensure, “York University maintains responsible, ethical, and sustainable investment.”
The YU Divest coalition maintains that the motion targets all weapons companies, regardless of the nations to which they operate. Nevertheless, anti-Israel narratives and support for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions in relation to the divestment protest can be easily found on social media.
Followers of the Never Again Canada Facebook page have made death threats, targeting members of the coalition, specifically Hammam Farah, founder of Students Against Israeli Apartheid.
Never Again Canada and the Jewish Defence league planned a counter protest to the YU divest rally.
When the JDL refused to leave the Student Centre, police arrived on the scene.
Officer Ewan McDermott said everything went smoothly, urging people to move along and stop crowding around the escapades to see how the events would unfold.
Altomare says security was monitoring the JDL activities occurring at the main entrance to the campus at Keele Street and York Boulevard, Vari Hall, and in the Student Centre.
“External to the campus at the Keele Street and York Boulevard entrance gate, there were about 15 Jewish Defence League supporters waving JDL flags,” says Altomare. “There were no incidents at this location.”
“Community safety was our primary concern not only in planning for the event, but also the key factor informing the ‘on the ground’ management and decision-making by York Security Services.”
York met and worked with a number campus partners, including the management of the Student Centre, to ensure a proper security plan was in place.
“Appropriate steps were taken to peacefully de-escalate a few situations when it was necessary to do so,” says Altomare. “These situations involved a few individuals who did not identify themselves as affiliated with any group and who were not part of the protest in the Student Centre. As noted above, these brief verbal confrontations were de-escalated by security without incident and the protest was able to proceed in the Student Centre.”
The YU Divest rally had been planned for months.
SAIA started the divestment campaign in 2014, and believes Hillel and Hasbara at York support the ethnic cleansing of Palestine. However, the divestment campaign includes but is not limited to Israel.
Nevertheless, Hasbara at York maintains that the YU Divest motion is another way to target Israel.
“The YU Divest protest was held by a group of misinformed students who are under the impression that they are on the route to impactful change,” says Ariella Daniels, president of Hasbara at York. “It was initiated and held by SAIA, the anti-Israel group on campus and their alliances.”
Daniels says the YU Divest campaign is the next stage of the BDS motion, which singles out and isolates the state of Israel based on false allegations.
“It is distressing to see members of the current student government and candidates for this year’s YFS election participating in such activities without any previous research or inquiry,” says Daniels.
“Hasbara at York remains committed to educating the students about Israel and strives to restore dialogue among students. We remind everyone that there is no room for radical biases and that there are many angles to every narrative. We encourage students to always question, investigate and explore without sacrificing history.”
Hillel released a statement regarding SAIA’s belief that they support the ethnic cleansing of Palestine.
“Hillel believes strongly in a two state solution where Israelis and Palestinians can live as neighbours in peace,” says Natalie Slavat, president of Hillel at York.
“Misguided boycott or divestment campaigns targeting or referencing Israel is antithetical to peace…both in the Middle East and on this campus. This inflammatory language only serves to promote a toxic, intolerant environment and does nothing to promote civil discourse nor intellectual inquiry.”
Slavat says Jews have been boycotted throughout history, and “today BDS activists call for a boycott of the world’s only Jewish state and the only liberal democracy in the Middle East.”
“Many leaders in the BDS movement openly declare that their goal isn’t a peaceful, two-state solution, but rather the destruction of Israel. BDS isn’t pro-Palestinian, it’s simply anti-Israel.”
Ghada Sasa, YU Divest spokesperson, spoke about her summer living in the West Bank last semester. She was also interviewed by Russia Today at the rally last Thursday.
She says the protest was an “organized, peaceful, and powerful display of the unity of the York community, bringing together undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, alumni, and staff from diverse backgrounds and organizations, to send a message to the Board of Governors that they (YU Divest) won’t rest until they (York) divest.”
The YU Divest coalition has secured extensive support from the York community, according to Ghada, from institutions representing students, humanitarian causes, political and cultural groups, faculty and alumni.
“We will continue our efforts, and we will continue to gather support from all sectors of the York community.”
Less than one per cent of York’s endowment fund invests in weapons companies in a given financial quarter, says Sasa.
“The Board of Governors is also more than capable of finding alternative companies to invest in that are equally profitable while also maintaining York’s commitment to community members whose families are often directly affected by the arms manufacturers we fund. This does not have to be a choice between the financial security of our university and the lives of our community members.”
Trudy Pound-Curtis, assistant vice-president finance and CFO, was able to comment on the process to which students can voice their concerns for York’s investments.
The York University Advisory Committee on Responsible Investing includes students, faculty, and staff.
“The committee has held two separate panel discussions over the past two years to enable the community to hear diverse viewpoints on responsible investing,” says Pound-Curtis.
The committee has recently published online an engagement process for members of the York community, which is available here.
“As you will see, faculty, staff, students, retirees, and alumni can initiate a submission regarding responsible investing, which must be accompanied by a petition,” says Pound-Curtis.
“When the proposal is determined to be complete, it is forwarded to the YUACRI committee for consideration. Once the review is complete, YUACRI will develop a recommendation to the vice-president finance and administration on what further action, if any, should be taken.”
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