Vol. CXLII, No. 11
THE VARSITY November 29, 2021
Gertler “alarmed” by SCSU motions on BDS Jewish student leaders say motions are discriminatory Syeda Maheen Zulfiqar UTSC Bureau Chief
U of T President Meric Gertler has publicly condemned two motions that passed at the recent Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU) Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on November 24. The SCSU voted in favour of a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) policy which once again reaffirmed the union’s commitment to the BDS movement, a movement that economically sanctions Israel due to its occupation of the Palestinian territories. The policy mandates that the SCSU only work with companies that do not profit off of Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. In his statement, Gertler also raised concerns about the removal of language that protected academic freedom for Jewish students from another motion. The motions passed despite opposition by Jewish student leaders, who said that the policies attempt to control Jewish students’ views and will normalize microaggressions and discrimination against Jewish students. BDS policy SCSU Vice-President Equity Isaiah Murray introduced the policy, explaining that a policy from the 2020 AGM required the union to create a policy reaffirming its commitment to BDS. The policy mandates that the union “Refrain from engaging with organizations, services, or participating in events that further normalize Israeli apartheid,” including inviting speakers representing the Israeli Defence Force or that otherwise support Israeli occupation of Palestine. The policy mandates that the union try to avoid working with companies “that profit from the violation of Palestinian human rights.” It further requires that, when possible, the SCSU “terminate contracts with companies that are found to profit from the occupation of Palestine.” While the policy does recognize that Kosher food products may need to come from sources that aren’t BDS-compliant, it requests that “Efforts should be made to source Kosher food from organizations that do not normalize Israeli apartheid.” SCSU President Sarah Abdillahi defended the motion, saying that “there’s room for interpretation, and [we made sure] that there’s space for students to still be able to access resources.” In an email to The Varsity, Abdillahi wrote, “In accordance with our mandate, the Scarborough Campus Students’ Union (SCSU) is opposed to all acts of discrimination and harassment.” Jewish Student Life (JSL) Vice-President Internal Gabriela Rosenblum spoke against the motion. “This motion imposes inequitable barriers to Jewish student life,” Rosenblum said. “This motion dictates what is acceptable for Jews to believe… So Jews have to prove that they are good Jews in the eyes of the student government.” Yardena Rosenblum, the JSL’s president, also spoke against the motion at the meeting. “We stand against this motion because we are scared that it will only normalize the microaggressions that we already face.” Speaking in favour of the motion, Director of Biological Science Gautham Krishna said that the policy is “a stance against a government that has been and is currently oppressing thousands of Palestinian individuals in their own land” and that it isn’t antisemitic. Amendments to Jewish students’ rights motion A motion to reaffirm the rights of Jewish students
at UTSC, written by SCSU Physical and Environmental Sciences Director Max Fine, was also presented at the meeting. However the SCSU Policy and By-law Committee made a number of amendments to the motion, mostly removing language that reaffirmed Jewish students’ rights to organize and advertise events in support of Israel and Zionism. The committee removed a resolution mandating that the “SCSU re-affirm its commitment to ensuring that Jewish students are unencumbered by discriminatory policies or actions by the union or
“This motion imposes inequitable barriers to Jewish student life”
its officers, as promised by the union’s equity statement, and the Ontario Human Rights Code.” Furthermore, the committee removed language that demanded the SCSU “[recognize] the right of Jewish students, like all students, to organize & advertise events to express their political, cultural and/or religious views.” The amendments also removed resolutions that ensured the SCSU would continue to recognize Jewish student groups that associate with outside organizations. Abdillahi said that the resolutions were removed because they were redundant, as the SCSU already recognizes these groups. However, she added that the original motion is too broad in its wording and may allow for student groups to be recognized outside of the scope of the SCSU. She said, “It’s going to be out of our scope, it’s not going to be possible for us to do.” Gabriela Rosenblum spoke against the amendments and stressed the importance of adopting the wording in Fine’s original motion. Despite the opposition, the motion was passed with the cuts made by the Policy and By-law Committee. In an email to The Varsity, Fine wrote, “The decision by the executives of the SCSU to amend the Jewish student rights motion behind closed doors in a meeting of the Policy and Bylaws Committee showed the executive’s intention to strike specific protections and freedoms that Jewish student groups enjoy.” Continued on page 2.
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CAUT lifts censure over hiring scandal Lifting of censure marks end of yearlong controversy Hannah Carty Editor-in-Chief
On November 25, the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) Council officially lifted its censure of the University of Toronto over a hiring scandal that erupted in September 2020 at the Faculty of Law. The censure was imposed in April 2021 over concerns that U of T had violated its commitments to academic freedom. Two months after pausing the censure in September 2021, the CAUT voted to officially lift it at its 91st council meeting. While the censure was in effect, the CAUT asked that its members boycott appointments and speaking engagements from U of T. Background of the censure In September 2020, controversy erupted after allegations surfaced that U of T rescinded a job offer to Dr. Valentina Azarova for the position of director of the Faculty of Law’s International Human Rights Program. Allegedly, the job offer was rescinded after a donor to the university complained about her writings on Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. The CAUT paused the censure in September after U of T re-offered the position to Azarova. The CAUT had listed re-offering the position as a major component of lifting the censure. Advocacy from U of T community members also demanded that the university re-offer the position to Azarova.
However, Azarova ultimately declined the offer, citing “important uncertainties that could not be resolved in the course of negotiations.” CAUT lifts the censure The CAUT announced in a tweet that the censure has been lifted in “recognition of actions taken, including new language in uni [sic] policy to prevent donor influence.” In response to the allegations of donor interference, U of T has modified the Provostial Guidelines on Donations and all hiring staff have attended training sessions on donor relations. CensureUofT, an advocacy group created in response to the censure, issued a statement following the announcement saying that the U of T administration has “downplayed the problem of donor interventions and has ignored calls for better collegial governance practices and administrative accountability.” In an email to The Varsity, a spokesperson for U of T wrote that the decision is welcomed by the university and that it is “pleased that the underlying issues that led to the censure have been resolved.” “With this difficult period now behind us, the University looks forward to bridging the divisions that emerged in our community during this controversy,” wrote the spokesperson. U of T also thanked the CAUT for interacting with the university in a “thoughtful way” throughout this period.