Mission accomplished? As pro-Palestine university encampments dismantle across Canada, a look at what students did, or did not accomplish

Students protesters behind the pro-Palestine encampments at prominent Canadian universities began dismantling their camps — most voluntarily — in the wake of an Ontario court granting an injunction to the University of Toronto early July to clear the tents on school property.

The encampments are part of a massive wave of pro-Palestinian demonstrations at post-secondary institutions across North America that took off after the events of Oct. 7 that eventually resulted in an outright war between Israel and Hamas at the cost civilian Palestinian lives.

Yahoo News Canada takes a comprehensive look at the student-led movement, detailing the journey resolute protesters took over the past months at University of Toronto, McGill University, University of British Columbia, University of Ottawa and Dalhousie University.

The recap below reveals how long the student encampments lasted, the demands put forth by the protesters, the university's response and which schools have yet to act on encampments.

University of Toronto Department of Social Justice Education Professor John Portelli spoke to Yahoo News Canada, detailing the state of affairs at Canadian universities in the context of handling sensitive and divisive topics.

University of Toronto

Duration: 9 weeks

The first tent pitched as part of the student encampment movement by the pro-Palestine protesters was reported on May 2. The number of tents grew over the course of weeks as student leaders and university administration met several times to negotiate a deal that worked for both parties involved.

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice granted an injunction to the University of Toronto on July 2 to clear a pro-Palestinian encampment on school property. Protesting students cleared the occupied campus grounds voluntarily in the wake of the court ruling.

Demands:

The protesters at University of Toronto put forward the following demands for the administration:

1. Cut ties with Israel

2. Divest from companies profiting from Israel’s offensive in Gaza

3. Terminate partnerships with the country's academic institutions deemed complicit in the war

University of Toronto response:

The university administration and student leaders met multiple times at the table to negotiate a resolution both parties could agree on. Meanwhile, the institute requested the Ontario Superior Court for an injunction to end the encampment and return the campus grounds to administration control. After granting the injunction, protesters — especially organizers with University of Toronto Occupy for Palestine — said the tents were being taken down voluntarily despite the university administration not complying with any of the demands.

In exchange, the University of Toronto agreed not to take legal or disciplinary action against students, faculty members and staff involved in a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus as long as the occupation is ended peacefully.

McGill University

Duration: 10 weeks

A student encampment on Quebec's McGill University was erected on April 27 and lasted until July 10, when protesters were escorted off campus and tents cleared by private security guards hired by the administration to investigate health and safety risks on the encampment sites, including drug use.

The university says most people sleeping there were unhoused and decided there was an "urgent" need to take down the camp.

Like the University of Toronto, McGill requested an injunction from the Quebec Superior Court, however, it was rejected on two occasions previously, causing the administration to seek another. Montreal police were unwilling to dismantle the encampment without the approval of a judge. The institute instead opted to hire private security guards instead of waiting for a court order.

Therefore, the dismantling of encampments at McGill is not deemed voluntary.

Demands:

Key encampment groups McGill Hunger Strike for Palestine and Students for Justice in Palestine called on the McGill administration to boycott and divest from:

1. International weapons manufacturers Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, Thales SA and Safran SA, which they say have either supplied Israeli forces or have profited from the war

2. Companies that they say provide other supplies such as communications equipment and fuel to the Israeli military, and companies that have operations in occupied territory

3. Several big Canadian banks, targeted because of their apparent holdings in weapons manufacturers

4. Canadian grocers that sell Israeli products

5. Companies that have expanded into the country, or plan to, including Shake Shack, Open Text Corp. and Johnson & Johnson.

McGill’s response:

Over the two months, McGill maintained its position on not investing directly in individual stocks or companies listed among the demands of protesters, instead using the services of fund managers to choose investments.

The school said it selects fund managers based on criteria including reputation, risk and adherence to environmental, social and governance principles.

Last month, McGill ended negotiations with student protesters, denying their demand that the university divest from all companies with financial ties to Israel. University officials did say it will explore divestment from weapons manufacturers.

University of British Columbia

Duration: 9 weeks

The closure of University of British Columbia's (UBC) camp was pretty low-key and came on July 7, more than two months after the first tents were reported on site April 29.

The tents were taken down voluntarily by the protesting students, the inspiration of which seemed to have been rooted in following the lead of their peers at University of Toronto, who dismantled their encampment voluntarily after a judge ruled in favour of an injunction sought by the school to clear the camp.

Demands:

The list of demands put forth by the protesters at UBC were similar as those brought forward by students in Toronto and Montreal.

Protesters called on the West Coast Institute to divest from Israeli companies which, according to them, are complicit in the “oppression and genocide” of Palestinians. They also called for an academic boycott of Israeli universities and other institutions.

UBC response:

The administration at UBC did not bridge the demands of pro-Palestine protesters.

Midway through the protests, the UBC president told pro-Palestinian protesters that the school must remain neutral on the Gaza conflict.

Taking a position on the matter would undermine the rights of people who hold different views to express themselves, according to the university, which is choosing to not engage in “moral relativism” while hoping for a ceasefire and a lasting peace in the Middle East.

University of Ottawa

Duration: 11 weeks

Much like protests across most of the other Canadian universities, the encampments at the University of Ottawa was first reported in late April and was voluntarily dismantled by students on July 9.

Demands:

Majority of demands presented by the protesting groups at University of Ottawa resonated with groups setting up encampments elsewhere in Canada and called for the administration to:

1. Cut ties with Israel and divest from investments in companies “funding the genocide.”

2. Acknowledgment of anti-Palestinian racism

University of Ottawa response:

According to the Ottawa chapter of the Palestinian Youth Movement, University of Ottawa administrators "set the tone of the meeting by refusing to discuss any of the encampment's demands."

The university had a unique position throughout the two months of protesting where the administration chose to remain tight-lipped about the encampment since the start of May, not responding to media requests for comment on the matter.

Protesting groups accused University of Ottawa of “stalling” and “speaking to us in bureaucratic jargon, and dismissing our very reasonable demands altogether."

Dalhousie University

Duration: Ongoing

The encampment at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia remains as students continue to protest since May 12, when the first tents were set up.

READ MORE: Pro-Palestinian encampment set up at Dalhousie University in Halifax

Demands:

The organizers of protesting groups at the Dalhousie University demanded disclosure and divestment of university funds from Israel along with the usual list as shared elsewhere in institutes across the country to put pressure in the Israeli government.

Dalhousie's response:

The student union at Dalhousie enjoyed a rather unique feat in that they got the university senate to grant academic amnesty to pro-Palestinian protesters until the end of August. Therefore, organizers and participants plan to stay on campus at least until Aug 31 in efforts to make the university completely divest from Israel.

Students at Dalhousie are also joined by groups at the University of Victoria in British Columbia where the encampments continue to rage on in an attempt to put an end to the tragedy in the Middle East which has claimed the lives of more than 37,000 Palestinians so far.