The school is seeking $1,500,000 in damages for trespass, damage to property, intimidation and ejectment
The University of Waterloo (UW) is suing protesters from an anti-Israel encampment on its main campus for $1.5 million in damages.
“It’s past time they’re shut down,” tweeted Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) in response to the lawsuit on Thursday.
“We hope this is a strong message for the other encampments on campuses across the country. Too often we’ve seen antisemitic harassment, discrimination, and hateful speech and actions connected with many of these encampments,” CIJA, the advocacy agent of the Jewish Federations across Canada, wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
The document names seven Occupy UWaterloo members for their involvement in setting up what the school calls an “indefinite encampment” next to the Graduate House on UW’s main campus.
The university is asking Occupy UWaterloo to remove any encampment or obstructions erected and “remediate” the property to its original condition. The document also demands that encampment members do not rebuild and must refrain from interfering with the University’s Senate, board of governors and all teaching-related activities.
The document outlines the conditions for the Waterloo Regional Police, the Ontario Provincial Police, or any police service to remove the encampment and arrest the participants.
The encampment has called for UW to divest from companies that appear on the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) list and for an “academic and cultural boycott” of Israeli companies and universities, according to the Waterloo Region Record.
On June 21, 2024, UW issued a trespass notice in person and online to all encampment participants, but it was staunchly rejected, according to the court document. UW claims defendant Ahmad Kamal wrote on the trespass notice posted on the wall of the encampment: “Again: I ain’t reading all that. Free Palestine”
“History will absolve us,” the @OccupyUW post goes on to say.
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