Metal fences walled off the grassy areas in the Studley Quad of Dalhousie University on Tuesday.
A worker cut the grass on the front door stairs of the Henry Hicks Building.
On the inside of the fence were patches of dead grass, the marks of tents from a pro-Palestine encampment, which stood for 78 days.
Police and university security dismantled the encampment Monday after protesters moved into the Rowe Management building and “sought, harassed, and intimidated” people working and studying in the building, according to a memo from university President Kim Brooks and Vice-Provost Rick Ezekiel.
The school also closed that day, citing safety concerns. It was still closed Tuesday, even though the encampment was gone. It will reopen its doors Wednesday.
The university said it had a “tone of respectful engagement” with the encampment, initially.
But that “significantly shifted” on July 23 after some members of the encampment held a press conference in the foyer of the Henry Hicks Building.
After the conference, some protesters said they planned to occupy the building. The memo said they brought sleeping bags and refused to leave, which made some staff in the building feel “unsafe” and afraid to leave their offices.
On Friday, the school gave a notice of trespass to people in the encampment. They had to be gone by 7 p.m. on Sunday.
The deadline came and went with no movement from people in the tents.
Monday morning Dalhousie security tried to remove tents and other items, but in response protesters put up barriers in front of the Hicks building, the school said.
Around 3 p.m., encampment members moved into the Kenneth C. Rowe Management building.
They occupied the lobby and, the memo said, they “sought out, harassed, and intimated” people working and studying in the building.
“We welcome peaceful, respectful dialogue and debate; however, harassment and intimidation will not be tolerated,” the school wrote.
Halifax police and Dal security cleared the building of protesters and the last of the tents were gone from the Studley Quad in the evening.
The school said Monday was emotional for many people in the Dal community.
“Dalhousie is a space of learning and a workplace where people should not be subjected to experiences that leave them feeling physically and psychologically unsafe.”
A student who participated in the encampment previously told our newsroom that they wanted the university to disclose their investments and divest from the ones that support Israel’s war efforts.
Our newsroom has reached out to the the university and the Students for Liberated Palestine Halifax social media page for additional comment.
The Dalhousie Student Union says the university chose to escalate things between the school and the encampment when it issued a notice of trespass on Friday.
Using police to remove the encampment on Monday “starkly contradicts the peaceful engagement and educational objectives the encampment consistently upheld,” the student’s union wrote on social media.
The union said this infringes on the students’ right to free expression and peaceful protest. It also goes against the school’s policies for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility, the union said.
Although the school said they closed because of safety concerns, the students’ union argued these were unfounded. Instead, the union said the real safety issue came from recruiting police to remove tents and personal belongings.
“Having engaged in positive dialogue from the start of our advocacy, we were proud to be part of Dalhousie, an institution we believed supported meaningful student involvement,” the union wrote.
“However, the recent events contradict the collaborative spirit we valued, severely undermining our trust in the university’s leadership.”
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