Protests that led to TMU students’ arrests ‘symptoms’ of campus polarization: review

Two recent Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) protests resulted in student arrests, prompting an external review that concluded such incidents are likely to recur unless the university takes decisive action. The review, conducted by former Ontario Court of Appeal judge Mary Lou Benotto and lawyer Margot Finley, determined that the events of September 19 and November 5 were symptomatic of a deteriorating campus climate following the Israel-Hamas war.

The reports states that a student was arrested after disrupting a TMU-hosted Democracy Forum event, which featured a discussion with federal Minister of Artificial Intelligence, Evan Solomon. The arrest, while deemed reasonable and lawful by the report, was criticized for being portrayed negatively on social media. Later, several protesters were arrested during a disruption of a pro-Israel event, due to glass breaking and injuries sustained.

The report found that TMU's policies could address much of the conduct but often failed to apply them consistently, contributing to campus tensions. The report recommended several steps for TMU, including updating its freedom of speech statement to explicitly prohibit intimidation, harassment, and interference with others' rights to free expression.

The university's president, Mohamed Lachemi, has since launched a task force on campus expression, antisemitism, and community safety, set to provide an implementation blueprint by March of the following year.