Pro-Palestinian protesters set up encampment at University of Guelph

Just as one Ontario university reached a deal that will see pro-Palestinian protesters pack up their tents and leave campus — another has sprung up.

A few dozen tents were set up overnight at the University of Guelph protesters say they’re not going anywhere until the school divests.

“Looking at what’s happened in the past seven months, we think it’s imperative for the university to take a stance, to boycott and to divest,” said Firoza Farooqi, a fifth year student at Guelph.

Protesters are following in the footsteps of dozens of post-secondary schools across Canada and the United States — camping outside until the top brass agree to divest funds from companies supporting Israel in its war against Hamas.

“We found that the University of Guelph has investments in 21 arms manufacturers, and this is a 133 per cent increase since 2019, which is a massive disparity,” said Farooqi.

Guelph organizers say their calculations are based on a 2023-2024 total equity holding report, obtained from the university through a freedom of information request.

CHCH News has not independently verified their numbers.

Around 30 tents are visible in the encampment, and organizers say they are expecting more people as the protest continues.

The university did not respond to CHCH’s request for an on-camera interview, instead pointing to an online statement, that reads in part:

“Encampments go against university policies and are not permitted as they entail health and safety risks for individuals in the encampment and for other members of the community.”

It goes on to say that prior to the set up of the encampment, the university received and is reviewing a “divestment submission” from community members, who were invited to speak with the school’s finance committee.

“We have tried several times to have communications, however, the admin have repeatedly either stonewalled us, not acknowledged us, suppressed us,” said Waida Mirzada, a protestor at the encampment.

Hillel Guelph, a Jewish student group on campus, shares the university’s concerns about safety on campus. The school says its campus safety office is monitoring the situation.

“The fact that it’s right in the centre of campus, it’s hard to get around it. There’s definitely some concerns for Jewish students, pro-Israel students about wearing their Star of David, their Kippa on campus, and then there’s also lots of concerns about where this could escalate to,” said Guelph Hillel President, Jake Levy.

All of this comes as Ontario Tech University in Oshawa is claiming victory today. Students say they have reached a deal with the administration that will disclose all university investments.

In exchange, students will tear down the encampment. On the other hand, McMaster encampment organizers say they have resumed negotiations with the university, after what they called a “disappointing” proposal from the school last week.