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What I saw at the pro-Palestine U of T encampment — and why the school should shut it down

OPINION: I was at Occupy Toronto in 2010. I was at the Ottawa convoy sites in 2022. At the outset of such things, there’s a real cross-section of people there. That can change quickly
Written by Matt Gurney
Pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Toronto on May 2. (Matt Gurney)

On Thursday afternoon, I spent a few hours at the site of the protest encampment that had sprung up overnight at the University of Toronto. The column below will be a little less structured than usual. It won’t have a clean narrative flow. But I’d like to offer the readers three different things: a simple description of what I observed, a bit of commentary on what the encampment is (and is not), and some advice for the university administration, based on my past experiences covering such encampments.

A note before we begin: I did have my press ID with me but didn’t show it during my visit. I didn’t conduct any interviews or “official” business. My purpose on Thursday was purely to observe and experience the encampment as any passerby would. A few people engaged me in conversation, but I kept it to polite chitchat. I intend to go back more formally, but first, I just wanted to see it and experience it. Please keep that in mind.

Let’s start with the basics: what’s going on. At the heart of the U of T campus is a road loop called King’s College Circle. Inside the loop is a park, a large open expanse of grass, cut through by some pedestrian walkways. It’s a beautiful spot in the centre of a beautiful campus. To the south, the CN Tower and part of the skyline are plainly visible. To the east, only about 100 metres away, stands the Ontario legislature. Other campus buildings surround the rest of the circle. It is truly a beautiful spot in the city. The university had recently fenced off the park area, saying it was to protect the grass for upcoming convocation ceremonies, and that’s no doubt true. It’s also no doubt true that school officials were aware that many campuses across North America had had encampments pop up, and they likely hoped the fence would help deter that in Toronto.

No such luck. The protesters came in at night, dismantled a section of fence, and established an encampment at the rough centre of the park area. Protesters themselves established a guarded gate at the gap in the fence and control access to the interior. (I was denied access on the grounds that I was not affiliated with the university and did not have anyone inside who would vouch for me.)

To put this plainly, the fence erected by the administration has been turned against it. It now serves as the outer perimeter of the encampment — a help, not a deterrent or obstacle. The fence is now the site of many banners and posters with slogans; many of these are crude and improvised affairs, markers on scrap cardboard, but some are professionally done and have no doubt been seen throughout the city during the recent marches. There were also many phrases scrawled on the sidewalks inside the fenced-in area using colourful chalk. I’ll have more to say about these later, but for now, just to give the reader a visual, the fence is being slowly covered by posters and banners. There were very few of them when I was there, but even over the course of my two hours, more were added, and I did note that the later in the day it got, the more the signs being added tilted toward the professional and permanent.

(Matt Gurney)

The tents, which include a few older, mismatched ones but are mainly brand-new and matching, are in the centre of the open space. Because of the size of the area, these tents are a considerable distance from the perimeter fence. In the rest of the open area, I saw couples sprawled on the grass and even individual people enjoying the sun or taking a nap. (Thursday, the first day of the encampment, was a truly glorious spring day in Toronto, something that struck me more than once as I walked the site, for reasons I’ll get into shortly.) I also saw people sitting and chatting in small groups on benches that are inside the fence perimeter. Later during my visit, a game of pickup soccer began, as a group of young men inside found an isolated area inside the fence and began to kick a ball around.

The improvised gate is worth mentioning specifically. The gate occupies a space left vacant by the removal of one section of fence. The gate itself is nothing more than a banner reading “From the river to the sea” held by four or five students. When someone needs in or out, one of the students steps back, opening a gap that the people can pass through. Just inside, there were several folding tables that seemed to be functioning as a kind of reception area and a place to inventory supplies.

I’d also like to mention what was happening just outside the gate. There was a crowd gathered, but, honestly, not a huge one. It’s always hard to eyeball a group, but I’d guess a hundred, maybe two hundred tops, during the mid-afternoon. (I do understand a larger crowd gathered later.) There were some obvious hard-core activist types with buttons and flags and pamphlets, but most of the people there seemed simply curious. Some were clearly students just on a coffee or smoke/vape break. Lots of people were just jogging in the sunshine. There was a light security presence, meaning private security and campus security; during my two hours there, I saw zero — repeat, zero — uniformed Toronto police. Outside the gate, a few tables had been set up: students with matching buttons were passing out literature, mostly about the cause of Palestinian liberation, but I saw a few other generally left-wing issues represented —  one person, for examples, was handing out flyers about Indigenous rights, and another was talking about LGBTQ liberation.

(Matt Gurney)

I observed a slow but steady trickle of supply donations. People would approach the gate and hand over bags of food or supplies. Paper towels and toilet paper were much in evidence. During my time near the gate, a hand-written sign was added: it indicated that no further food donations were necessary and directed would-be donors to consult the encampment’s online sites for a list of needs.

A few more quick comments to make before I move onto some analysis: as I was there, university crews were erecting spotlights around the perimeter of the encampment, outside the fence. I noticed something interesting that I’ll refrain from commenting on beyond noting the fact of it: medical masks, of the variety used during the pandemic, are being used to hide the identities of encampment supporters. Many, if not most, of the people inside the fence are wearing them when near the fence, and most of the people dropping off supplies were masked during their drop-off. After I noticed this, my curiosity was piqued, so I found a bench not far from the gate and sat down for a while to just observe. More than once, I saw people approaching the encampment with bags of supplies, unmasked. They’d stop before getting too close, mask up, drop the supplies off, and leave, leaving the mask in place until they had walked a ways away, when they’d remove it. The reader will forgive me for suspecting this was not out of concern over germs and viruses.

And the final point of observation: I was followed. As noted above, I simply showed up as a civilian, as it were. I walked around the fence line a few times, took a lot of photos, and tried to get inside once as part of a larger group and was told I’d need student ID or to be vouched for by someone inside. I didn’t identify myself as press and simply walked away when denied entrance. But I did stay by the gate, observing and taking photos, and was clearly making some of the students inside uncomfortable. One of them began mirroring my path around the perimeter as I walked around it, staying on her side of the fence and trying her best to make it look like she was just out for a walk. (She wasn’t very good at that.) She was also texting a lot as she mirrored my route, and, after a minute or two, a young woman outside the fence, also texting a lot, was suddenly shadowing me about 20 or 30 feet behind me. The two young women, God bless them, were more earnest than skillful in their shadowing and kept shooting meaningful glances at each other while avoiding eye contact with me. I eventually just stopped in place and alternated staring at both of them until they got the message that they’d been spotted and both sheepishly walked away.

(Matt Gurney)

To be clear, I did not feel threatened by this. And I also suspect I know exactly what was happening. I look like a cop — or at least what people think cops look like. This is especially true when I’ve thrown on an old ball cap because of the sun and have my dark sunglasses on. I am like a cop right out of central casting. I think they thought I was surveilling them.

And, in fairness, in a sense I was.

So. That’s what I saw. I want to briefly now talk about what I think about it. My intention here isn’t to skew anyone’s views to my own; I’ll let my observations above speak for themselves. But there is a specific point I want to make about the posters and the chalk graffiti and also the overall mood.

Let’s start with the mood: Buoyant, cheerful, even elated. There was a lot of energy. A lot of excitement. With the exception of my being badly and obviously tailed, it was not an unpleasant experience or a threatening environment.

With one major exception: the slogans.

I have a rule that has served me well these past six months. I don’t argue about the Middle East. I let people come to their own conclusions. I won’t change their minds, and they won’t change mine, and I’m at peace with that. I’m going to carry that policy into this column. I am not here to change your mind. But what I will say is that, while much of the sidewalk chalk and most of the signs are generic and banal statements, some are not. Some are a problem, and I would not blame or fault a Jewish citizen for being alarmed by them.

There is a sign posted inside the fence, but set back from it, where it can’t be removed, that says “Glory to All Martyrs.” A hand-painted banner reads “This is the intifada.” I saw that phrase chalked onto the sidewalk as well. The banner at the gate, as noted, says “From the river to the sea.”

I’m not going to argue with anyone about the plain meaning of these phrases. I am going to say that there is, if nothing else, an ongoing dispute as to whether or not these words are either expressions of support for a sovereign Palestinian state or, conversely, the lauding of a massacre by a recognized terror group and a genocidal call for the annihilation of Israel’s millions of Jews. Whatever your views on these phrases are, I am simply asking that you recognize that there are going to be a lot of people (and I admit that I am among them) who consider these slogans to be calls for violence against Israel — and that is going to absolutely contribute to feelings of fear and insecurity among members of Toronto’s Jewish community.

Even less ambiguous was the chalk graffiti that declared “All the Zionists are racists. All the Zionists are terrorists.” Or “We shall return.” Or “Leave Falasteen [Palestine] alone & go back to Europe.” I have photos of all of these slogans.

We have been told repeatedly in recent months that we can’t judge an entire protest march by what someone with a megaphone happens to shout out during it, and I agree.

But I am going to politely suggest that there is room to judge those who feel at home living in or supporting an encampment that has messaging explicitly calling for the targeting of an entire population and its removal (or worse) from their homes. I have an open mind to nuance, but I also agree that antisemitism is a real and growing threat, and if you don’t agree that some of those slogans are antisemitic and calls for violence, I’m not honestly sure what ever would satisfy you that that threshold had been met.

(Matt Gurney)

That’s my analysis. Let me close with advice to U of T: shut this encampment down and disperse it immediately.

I was at Occupy Toronto in 2010. I was at the Ottawa convoy sites in 2022. And I observed, in both cases, a gradual sorting effect unfold with those who were encamped. At the outset, there’s a real cross-section of people there. Many well-meaning students. Some more professional activists. But there’s a tremendous spirit of excitement and enthusiasm. It’s an adventure!

But then the days go on. I noted above how gorgeous a day Thursday was. That won’t hold, as a glance at the forecast today confirmed. It’s going to rain, and it gets cold at night. Some of the more moderate students will decide it’s no longer a good time and drift away. Meanwhile, every activist in easy reach of the city will have moved in, bringing their own agendas with them. Also, and this is tragic but unavoidable, there are thousands of people living rough in Toronto these days, many of them with serious mental-health issues and some of them who are violent. How long until they hear about the nice park with the tents and food where the police won’t go?

Indulge me this brief aside: I took the TTC to the encampment on Thursday and then back home. And on both journeys, there were people on the subway who were in evident mental distress. One was non-threatening, if loud. The other, on my ride back, was extremely threatening. He didn’t target anyone specifically, but he was screaming about “cutting faces” and “fucking you up” and whatnot.

That man should be in a hospital. But there isn’t room for him, as you all know. Yesterday, he was on a subway. How long until he’s at U of T?

This is not a prediction; it’s simply a pattern that has played out before. I still remember, a few weeks into Occupy Toronto, a protestor telling me sheepishly that, even though they’d started with an explicit anti-state, anti-institution bias, they’d been forced to repeatedly call the police because some of the young, idealistic women who’d been among the first occupiers had been subjected to unwanted and persistent, at times aggressive, sexual advances from some of the harder element that had moved in later. It only took a few weeks for reality to shatter the young man’s expectations. How long until the group at U of T is experiencing the same thing?

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Indeed, it’s already not exactly a student-led movement, as U of T professor Kevin A. Bryan (who did get inside the main area)observed in a Twitter thread on Thursday. He assessed that it was a mix of students and full-time activist types, and I agree with that assessment. But here’s the thing: whatever that ratio is right now, it’s going to start changing. It’s probably already changing. How many students spent their first night in a tent last night and decided it wasn’t for them? And who’ll replace them?

Time is not on the university’s side. Delay makes its future decisions harder. It had already set a deadline for the dismantling of the encampment of 10 p.m. last night but did not enforce it. I think that was a mistake. And I wonder what it will do next.

I will be returning to U of T, probably in a more formal capacity to report, not just observe. Stay tuned.