On Jan. 23, a group of McGill students, staff, and members of campus unions congregated at James Square to protest the provisional protocol regarding demonstrations, protests, and occupations, as well as any protocol the university might implement to regulate peaceful assembly on campus.
The protest comes after Provost Anthony Masi and Vice-President (Administration and Finance) Michael Di Grappa announced on Jan. 16 that the current provisional protocol will be replaced by a statement of values and principles concerning freedom of expression and freedom of peaceful assembly, rather than the draft permanent protocol that McGill released on Nov. 30.
According to Di Grappa, the provisional version of the protocol will likely remain in effect until April’s Board of Governors’ (BoG) meeting, at which point the BoG will vote to adopt the statement of values.
The first draft of a permanent protocol generated criticism due to its restrictive clauses, lack of clarity, and absence of student input.
“We’re hoping to get the message across to both [the] administration and the Board members, that the population of McGill is not in support of this protocol,” Kevin Whitaker, president of McGill University Non-Academic Certified Association (MUNACA), said. “We believe that it is a violation of the Quebec Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and we will not support this.”
According to protesttheprotocol.com, dissenters are particularly concerned that McGill plans to launch a new operations management policy regarding protests on campus, that does not require approval from either Senate or the BoG. This will be released in tandem with the statement of values, which will require approval from both Senate and the BoG.
Although McGill withdrew the draft of the permanent protocol on Jan. 16, participants in last Wednesday’s protest said they wanted to remain vigilant, and to continue communicating their discontent in hopes of receiving a more acceptable proposal from the next round of consultations.
“We already consider that there is victory on our party’s part, because the [draft of the] permanent protocol has been removed,” Julian Menezes, mobilization officer for McGill’s Teaching Union (AGSEM), said. “But … we’re just out here to make sure that McGill knows that all protocols [and] all statements of values that restrict freedom of expression and association … on campus are not acceptable. They do not reflect the democratic values of this institution, [nor] the people who built this institution.”
Jaime MacLean, president of the Association for McGill University Support Employees (AMUSE), expressed similar sentiments.
“We don’t need any protocol because the city of Montreal has its own protocol,” she said. “If anything, we need to be freer on campus.”
Baptist Rownir, a U2 arts student who attended the demonstration, expressed his support for the protest.
“[This protest is] basically another episode of administration and student conflict,” Rownir said. “I don’t think it’s great for the atmosphere [on campus], but we need it.”
“I definitely support the protest,” Bita Eslami, U2 social work, said. “[The] McGill administration is infringing [on] our freedom of assembly and expression. I don’t think it’s good for campus.”
