Pro-Palestinian protesters who had occupied the University of Toronto’s downtown campus for two months packed up their tents and vacated the site on Wednesday to comply with a court order. However, they vowed to continue pressing the university to meet their demands.
Organizers announced their decision to comply with the order about an hour before the 6 p.m. deadline. They left the area as they continued with a rally that drew a large crowd in support. The rally marched through the campus and along nearby College Street, with many participants waving Palestinian flags.
Mohammad Yassin explained that the group chose to leave early to avoid a potential confrontation with the police.
“We are leaving on our terms to protect our community,” he said.
Erin Mackey, another spokesperson for the group, criticized the university for failing to listen to the students, staff, and faculty.
“But ignoring us will make us go nowhere, we will continue to show up, we continue to demand divestment,” she said. “We will continue to show up day after day.”
Throughout the day, demonstrators dismantled tents and tarps, with none remaining by late afternoon.
University President Meric Gertler expressed relief that the protesters complied with the order.
“I am pleased that the protesters have ended the encampment peacefully so that front campus can be restored and returned to the entire community,” he said in a statement. “Members of our community continue to be free to exercise their right to free speech and lawful protest at the University of Toronto.”
An Ontario judge had issued an order on Tuesday for the protesters to dismantle the encampment, which had been set up at King’s College Circle two months ago and at one point included up to 177 tents. The injunction authorized police to intervene if the demonstrators did not vacate by 6 p.m. Wednesday. Police stated they would enforce the order but did not disclose any operational plans.
Ontario Superior Court Justice Markus Koehnen's decision noted that while there was no evidence of violence or antisemitism by the encampment participants, the protest had compromised the university’s ability to control activities at King’s College Circle.
Koehnen emphasized that property owners generally decide what happens on their property, and allowing protesters to take control could lead to chaos if a stronger group decided to take over the space.
The protesters set up camp on May 2, demanding the university disclose and divest from investments in companies profiting from Israel’s actions in Gaza. The court ruling stated that the university has procedures for considering divestment requests and had offered the protesters an expedited process. However, the protesters expressed a lack of confidence in the process, citing past instances where the university president did not follow through on recommendations.
The university initially sought an urgent injunction against the encampment in late May because it was near Convocation Hall, where graduation ceremonies were scheduled throughout June. The court heard arguments over two days last month after most ceremonies had concluded.
No major disruptions were reported.
Judge Koehnen issued his decision on Tuesday, stating that the protesters, despite their passion, had no unilateral right to decide the use of the campus green space through “force, occupation, or intimidation.”
“If the property truly is a quasi-public space, why should one ad hoc group of people get to determine who can use that space for over 50 days?” he wrote. He also emphasized that while the protesters aimed to alleviate human suffering, depriving fellow residents of green space achieved nothing.
The ruling dismissed allegations that the encampment demonstrators had engaged in antisemitic hate speech. The judge noted that while some external speech rose to the level of hate speech, none of the encampment demonstrators were linked to those statements, and they had actively removed offensive messages when they appeared.
The judge also cited several instances where demonstrators themselves had been subjected to hateful comments. He described the encampment as a peaceful, inclusive community where Muslim and Jewish people had co-led Shabbat dinners and shared prayers.
Protesters argued that criticism of Israel had been conflated with antisemitism, fueling a moral panic and leading to repression against supporters of Palestinian rights. The judge acknowledged their concerns but stated that there was no right to occupy property that does not belong to them.
The university reiterated that protesters have the right to protest anywhere on campus but cannot set up camps or block access to university property.
-with files from Sharif Hassan
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