A Canadian university has chosen to shut down on Thursday following a flurry of concerned emails from community members in response to a planned anti-Israel rally.
Administrators from Dawson College in Montreal sent a message to students and employees two days earlier, on Tuesday, from academic dean Leanne Bennett, saying the school “has continued to assess developments leading up to the boycott of classes on Thursday, Nov. 21, as voted by the Dawson Student Union.”
She said that “after carefully considering these concerns and reviewing all available information about the planned actions, we have decided to cancel classes and close the college on that day.”
The announcement noted that labs, studios, the library and other spaces would be closed.
“The union’s vote to boycott classes is part of a wider student movement,” Christina Parsons, the school’s communications advisor, told JNS, pointing to an announcement for citywide student protests.
Federation CJA and CIJA released a joint statement in response to the closure, describing how “campuses across Quebec are facing threats from local demonstrators inspired by calls from the U.S.-based organization, Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP)—a group with alleged ties to Hamas—to strike and shut down academic institutions this Thursday.”
The Jewish organizations said the college had “set a dangerous precedent” and opposed the “normalization” of such decisions.
“For the sake of our treasured values and institutions, as well as thousands of students across Quebec,” they urged, “academic leaders must choose strength over weakness and stand firm against intimidation, threats and hate.”
Bennett stated that “our paramount concern is the safety and well-being of all our students and employees. It is our collective responsibility to work together to create a learning environment where everyone feels safe, and intimidation and violence of any kind are not tolerated.”
