The University of Toronto is facing criticism over student-organised events planned around the third anniversary of the Hamas-led October 7 massacre, including a vigil entitled “Honoring Our Martyrs” and a separate screening of a film called The Gaza Ghetto Uprising, The Jerusalem Post reports
Jewish organisations and academics have questioned the choice of date and warned that language used to promote the events could be interpreted as glorifying or minimising the violence of October 7, while the university says it must balance campus safety with freedom of expression.
Several student and activist groups are promoting the vigil, scheduled to take place at Sidney Smith Hall on October 7. Promotional material declares “3 years of genocide, we will not forget” and invites participants to “remember and honor the lives taken in Gaza over the past three years”.
The timing has attracted particular criticism because October 7 marks the anniversary of the 2023 Hamas-led assault on southern Israel, in which approximately 1,200 people were killed and hundreds abducted.
Dr Casey Babb, a national security expert and senior fellow at the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, said members of the Jewish community had reacted with alarm.
“Many in the Jewish community, and even those outside of it, who’ve also been subjected to the anti-Zionist lynch mob these last few years, were mortified to learn of this event – but not surprised,” Babb said.
He argued that similar events taking place across Canada on October 7 could feel to Jewish communities “like celebratory gatherings to honor our murderers”.
Babb also placed the controversy within the context of several recent security incidents in Canada, including the shooting outside Sons of Jacob Synagogue in Belleville and arrests connected with alleged plans for other attacks.
“Leaders in this country at all levels, and in all sectors, need to understand the connection between the two,” Babb said. “You can’t allow certain groups of people in this country to glorify terrorism, and indulge in heinous libels, and then feign outrage when people try to carry out attacks of their own.”
Honest Reporting Canada separately drew attention to another student-organised event scheduled for October 6. Several groups are planning to screen Adi Callai’s documentary The Gaza Ghetto Uprising at the SBA Center in the University of Toronto Students’ Union Student Commons.
The Network of Engaged Canadian Academics (NECA) acknowledged that students have a legitimate right to organise protests, rallies and memorials but said universities must also consider their responsibility to protect students from intimidation and harassment.
“Rallies, protests, and public memorials are important parts of democratic life, and students have the right to exercise freedom of expression,” NECA said.
However, it argued that such freedoms must exist alongside “the dignity and safety of all students” and the responsibility to maintain an environment free from harassment, discrimination, intimidation, hatred and violence.
NECA said the specific decision to commemorate Palestinian “martyrs” on October 7 raised difficult questions about how Jewish and Israeli students would experience the event.
“Choosing October 7 as the date for a memorial framed around Palestinian ‘martyrs’ demands that we ask whether the event functions as a memorial, or is it functioning as intimidation or the glorification of violence and terror,” it said.
The organisation noted that eight Canadians were among those killed in the October 7 attack and highlighted the murders, sexual violence, abductions and other atrocities committed during the assault.
NECA acknowledged that some organisers may intend the term “martyrs” simply as an expression of grief for Palestinians killed during the subsequent Gaza war. Nevertheless, it warned that the meaning could be very different when used specifically on the anniversary of the Hamas attack.
“In the context of October 7, the language of martyrdom can reasonably be heard as minimizing, justifying, or glorifying the violence of that day,” the organisation said.
NECA called on the university to examine what organisers mean by “martyrs”, why they selected October 7 and what measures would prevent the event becoming a platform for antisemitism, threats or glorification of terrorism.
Hillel Ontario has also written an open letter to University of Toronto leaders.
CEO Jay Solomon said events perceived as celebrating the October 7 atrocities could have a serious impact on Jewish students.
“There is no justification for honoring those who murdered, tortured, and kidnapped innocent people,” Solomon said. “Events that glorify October 7 tell Jewish students they are not safe on their own campuses.”
He called on university leaders to condemn such activity and explain how they and local police intend to assess security risks, enforce university rules and protect Jewish students from harassment before, during and after the events.
The University of Toronto confirmed that it was aware of several events planned on or near its campuses around October 7. A spokesperson noted that organisers include both recognised student organisations and outside groups with no official university status.
The university said it was assessing the events while balancing freedom of expression and human rights with its responsibilities under Ontario’s free-speech directive and Bill 166 regulations.
Campus Safety personnel are reviewing events brought to the university’s attention and coordinating with municipal police where necessary, the spokesperson said.
“It is not the University’s role to adjudicate speech that falls within the bounds of its policies or Canadian law,” the university stated.
However, it said it would act quickly if policies were violated and stressed that everyone on university property, whether students, staff or visitors, must comply with both university rules and Canadian law.
The controversy therefore centres not simply on whether Palestinian students and activists have the right to commemorate Palestinian deaths, but on the deliberate choice of October 7 and the meaning of describing people as “martyrs” on the anniversary of the deadliest attack against Jews since the Holocaust. For Jewish organisations, the central question is whether universities can protect legitimate political expression while ensuring that the commemoration of Palestinian suffering does not become a vehicle for intimidation, antisemitism or the glorification of the atrocities that triggered the current war.
photo credit: COLE BURSTON/AFP via Getty Images
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