The Concordia Student Union and other student groups accuse Concordia University of police brutality and racial discrimination.

“Concordia security has seized students, detained students, physicalized students, racially profiled, followed students off campus, and generally harassed student activists,” said one student who did not want to be identified . They will be referred to as Bea for the purposes of this article.

Bea spoke about September 25, 2024, when three people were “violently” detained by police during a pro-Palestinian protest just outside the school’s downtown campus.

“There were a lot of people on the streets, people will not stay off the streets, demanding fair and moral goals around divestment from Israel and supporting liberation in Palestine,” Bea said. “And yet we’ve seen our government and our institutions like Concordia University crack down on protesters, and we’re in the midst of a nationwide crackdown on student protesters.”

Concordia University Safety and Prevention Services issued a statement on September 26 saying that “As always, Campus Safety and Prevention Services were on the scene and SPVM was alerted in advance.

“One of our officers was assaulted by protesters while stopping an individual who was committing acts of vandalism,” the statement continued. “The attack on security personnel and the anti-Semitic graffiti are unacceptable. SPVM arrested three of the protesters for criminal acts.”

Then, after CityNews left Thursday’s protest, Montreal police said two people were arrested around 2:30 p.m. A man and a woman, both in their 20s, were detained for assaulting a 35-year-old security guard. Both were released on a promise to appear.

All those I interviewed wore masks and preferred to remain anonymous.

“We want to be able to have political statements, which hasn’t happened recently,” said another student protester. “Departments are being silenced, faculty are being silenced, students are being cut, and I can’t stand it.”

Protesters say some have faced academic repercussions.

“The administration uses academic punishments against student protesters, such as tribunals and suspensions,” Bea said.

A spokesperson for Concordia University responded when contacted by CityNews:

“The Office of Student Tribunals (OST) is neutral in all cases it handles, whether the requesting party is a student, a faculty member, a staff member, or the University itself. (She) holds hearings to give students due process under various policies (…).”

The students plan to hold a press conference on November 1 at the corner of De Maisonneuve and rue Mackay.

“I believe in a similar democracy and a fair democracy where everyone should be able to make their voice heard,” said one protester.

Another saying: “We can’t let it stand. For a university that is supposed to be a next-generation university, we have to do better.”