Assessing the impact of the encampment protests

With the upcoming anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack and hostage-taking in Southern Israel, Canadian universities are bracing themselves for renewed protests this fall. University Affairs spoke with Mira Sucharov, professor of political science and Israel-Palestine relations expert at Carleton University on the impact of last spring’s pro-Palestinian encampments.

University Affairs: What struck you the most about the encampment protests that unfolded across the country last spring?

Mira Sucharov: They signal that the issue of Palestinian freedom from violence and occupation has really galvanized university students of all backgrounds. It’s not unlike how Canadian students in the 1980s protested against apartheid South Africa, and how, in the U.S. especially, students in the 1960s and 1970s spoke out against the Vietnam War. With tens of thousands of Palestinians being killed — and more are being killed every day — by Israeli bombs, I think it’s laudable that students are saying, “enough.”

UA: Some have said that the protests are cause for discomfort. What is your take on this?

Dr. Sucharov: Sure, encampments and protests like these can make people feel awkward and uncomfortable – but being uncomfortable is different than being unsafe. Protests are, at their root, about interrupting complacency. And interrupting complacency – pushing each other to think about how we can reshape the world we find ourselves in – is, I think, part and parcel of what being on a university campus is all about.

I should add, though, that there is a degree of understandable disappointment – and even anger – on the part of some Jewish groups that the protesters haven’t said nearly enough about the violence and terror of Oct. 7. This, despite the fact that some protesters are themselves Jewish. So in addition to the direct demands that they’re placing on university administrations for divestment and academic boycott, it would be ideal for the emotional wellness of the campus community writ large, if protesters had actively included calls for dignity, freedom and humanity of everyone – Israelis and Palestinians – between the river and the sea. I say this knowing that university administrations can decide whether to indirectly fund Israeli military might with their investments; they have much less leverage over Palestinian public opinion, and certainly no influence over a group like Hamas.

UA: To what extent were the protests successful in achieving their goals?

Mira Sucharov: I would say that overall they were successful on a basic level: they helped elevate the importance of an issue that many Canadians might simply prefer to turn away from. Whether they were successful in achieving their divestment goals, it’s too soon to know, but we’ve seen at least one university president – at McGill – state publicly that they will be reconsidering the university’s investments in weapons manufacturers. Whether the protesters will succeed in achieving a boycott of Israeli academic institutions is another story completely. Most universities see academic exchange and partnership as part and parcel of the principle of academic freedom. I think it’s highly unlikely that universities will do anything to fundamentally change those relationships.

UA: Is it too early to talk about lessons learned?

Dr. Sucharov: Well, I think that university administrators have seen that students are vocal and persistent and resilient when they believe in an issue, and when they see injustice and want to have it righted. Similarly, students have learned that sustained, non-violent pressure can pay off. I hope the protesters have also considered that they should be careful and mindful about the kinds of slogans they use and that their statements focus on everybody’s rights and dignity, and not only on the dignity of one group at the expense of another.

UA: In the future, what can academic institutions do differently to address student concerns?

Dr. Sucharov: I hope that they will find more ways to engage students on these issues. They should meet with student leaders to hear their concerns. At minimum, they should host events on campus that help shed light on the situation in Israel/Palestine, events that are done in the spirit of open academic inquiry. I saw how nervous many Canadian campuses were to do that kind of programming this past year, and so I hope they’ll realize that universities are the best place to have these kinds of difficult conversations. With the urgency of saving Palestinian lives from continued Israeli violence, and releasing Israeli hostages from Hamas captivity, the time for action is now.