Pro-Palestinian encampment erected by York University students on campus

A pro-Palestinian encampment has been erected at York University’s Keele Campus, just outside the subway station.

Students from York say they established the “York Popular University for Palestine (YPUP)” in the early hours of June 5 in an area they are calling the “People’s Commons for Palestine.”

They say they will remain outside the York University Subway Station until all of their demands of the university are met.

The demands from YPUP include disclosure and divestment of the university’s financial holdings that “directly or indirectly contribute to or profit from” the war in Gaza. They also call for a boycott of “current and future partnerships with Israeli academic institutions.”

University officials say they will look to establish a dialogue with the individuals in the encampment regarding the issues that have been raised while reminding the group that encampments or occupations are not permitted on school grounds.

“The Common is an open space, intended to be available for use by the entire York community consisting of some 60,000 plus students, faculty, instructors, staff and those who visit the Common regularly for work, study and leisure,” read a statement released on Wednesday.

“All community members should be able to rely on our campuses being respectful and safe for everyone, and we continue to call on all of us to treat each other with empathy and compassion as we navigate these issues together.”

York University joins a number of academic institutions which have had encampments established on school grounds in support of Palestinians during the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.

The University of Toronto had filed an injunction in order to try and remove the encampment that was set up on May 2 in King’s College Circle prior to graduation ceremonies that began on June 3, but will have to wait for a hearing starting on June 19.

The legal action was taken after a trespass notice to leave the area on May 27 was ignored. Demonstrators have said they will remain until their demands are met.

Convocation Hall faces King’s College Circle and more than 30 ceremonies are scheduled to take place before the motion is heard. The university says all events will proceed as planned with “extra precautions.”

An encampment at McGill University that has been in place for more than a month has forced the administration to move graduation ceremonies off campus to the Bell Centre, home of the Montreal Canadiens. 

With files from The Canadian Press