News

2021-2022 Treasurer Vacancy & By-election

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Treasurer By-Election

Dear Members of CUPE 3907:

Are you interested in improving your working conditions as an OISE graduate assistant? Contribute to your union and consider serving your union as a Treasurer. Read on for more details.

As the Chief Returning Officer (CRO) for CUPE 3907, I, Asmita Bhutani, am pleased to open the 2021 CUPE 3907 Elections for the position of Treasurer. For this position, an honorarium of $500 will be paid each month.

The Treasurer’s duties include developing and presenting the budget to members at the GMMs, receiving revenues and dues, maintaining and organizing financial records including tax-related documents, and chairing committees related to financial assistance funds. For the complete list of duties of a CUPE 3907 Treasurer, please refer to this website page and the Bylaws (Articles 7-9).

Nominees must be CUPE 3907 members in good standing (as per the bylaws). This means active employment as a GA at OISE, currently or within one year after the last date of active employment. The member should have submitted the membership declaration form and/or have attended a GMM (General Member Meeting). You will also be eligible if you attend the upcoming GMM meeting on Oct 27 at 5pm. International Students do not require Canadian Work Authorization for these positions.

Interested nominees will need to email the CRO, Asmita Bhutani at: cro@cupe3907.ca before 11.59 pm EST, Oct 28, 2021. Nominees must include the following in their email:

  • name as it appears on the student card (T-card).
  • telephone number
  • email address
  • student number
  • a personal statement of 250 words- that will be shared with members and on the website

Timeline:

  • Nominations open on Oct 13 and will close on Oct 28 at 11:59 pm EST
  • An All Candidates Meeting will be held on Oct 29 to discuss the roles and responsibilities of the position.
  • Elections will begin on Nov 10 at 12:01 am EST and end on Nov 15 at 11:59 pm EST. Election Appeals will only be accepted in writing until Nov 18 at 4 pm EST.
  • Positions will begin on Nov 19, 2021, and end on April 30, 2022.

 Information regarding campaigning:

  • CUPE 3907 will not refund funds for campaigning. CRO will monitor campaigning.
  • Due to COVID-19, only virtual campaigning is permitted. Candidates cannot enter the University for postering etc
  • Candidates are responsible for their own campaign. Campaigns must be consistent with the Equality Statement and the Code of Conduct.
  • Campaigning is not compulsory and is left to the discretion of the candidate

(Unsafe) Return to Campus

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Toronto Inter-University Coalition Town Hall and CFS/OUWCC joint response to reopening  plans.

Your executive committee has been actively advocating for a safe return to campus through meetings with allied organizations including UTEAU, OUWCC, and the Toronto Inter-University Coalition.

Last week, Alissa (President) and Justin (Vice President) attended the panel discussion, “Is It Safe Enough To Return To Campus? What Do Public Health Experts Say?” organized by the Toronto Inter-University Coalition, representing students, faculty, and staff across four Toronto universities. The interactive panel discussion included public health experts such as Dr. Ashleigh Tuite, Dr. Arjumand Siddiqui (Ontario Science Table members), as well as Dr. David Fisman (Canadian Academy of Health Sciences member) and others who tackled this question by focusing on three areas: Epidemiology, Ethics, and Mitigation Strategies.

The entire panel of public health experts agreed that interventions against infectious diseases must take a layered approach that includes: masking, physical distancing, improving ventilation, vaccines, quarantine & isolation, and several other measures.
This image, “swiss cheese” Respiratory Virus Pandemic Defence, illustrates how different interventions work together to prevent spread, and highlights why over-reliance on any single measure of defense against COVID-19 such as vaccines will not work well.

Against the advice of Ontario Science Table, university presidents (including UofT) persuaded the Ford government to circumvent public health measures and allow universities to greatly exceed Stage 3 capacity limits in classrooms and not require any physical distancing. Scientists on the panel explained that relaxing preventative measures does not “scientifically make sense” and “there is real concern that doing this will expand wave four in ways that we cannot imagine.”
With the start of the new academic year, many UofT students, faculty, and staff are also concerned about the university’s insistence on not listening to their own public health experts by foregoing capacity limits and physical distancing guidelines in classrooms.

Students and workers have expressed their concerns about unsafe reopening plans including a joint statement from the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario, which represents over 350,000 college and university students, and the Ontario University Workers Coordinating Committee (OUWCC), which represents over 30,000 contract university workers. In the statement, David Simao, University sector Chair for OUWCC stated that,

“the plans to return to campus have been recklessly determined without worker or student input. Workers have been left behind especially during previous outbreaks of COVID-19 on campus, and workers fear the semester ahead without proper health and safety actions being taken before students return to campus”

As representatives of graduate student workers, we are particularly concerned about the exclusion of student voices from institution and government reopening plans. You can actively participate in these conversations by becoming a Health and Safety representative or Departamental Steward.

If you have any questions or concern about your rights under the collective agreement, reach out us at cupe3907@gmail.com.

Check out our previous post with important resources from UofT, CUPE and other labour unions.

Fall 2021 COVID-19 Update

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Dear CUPE 3907 members,

We are writing to you today because this deadly pandemic isn’t over. Ontario has now entered the 4th wave of COVID-19 and its variants. As efforts continue to increase overall vaccine coverage and lower community transmission, public health measures must remain the foundation of the pandemic response to ensure that we have safe shared air and safe shared space so that research and teaching may resume safely.

Some of the recommendations made by the Ontario COVID-19 Science Advisory Table include:

  • Reducing indoor density, maintaining physical distancing, limiting large gatherings;
  • Continuing indoor mask policies and working from home; and
  • Implementing policies that accelerate vaccination (e.g. certificates, mandates, outreach).

This is called a layered approach and it helps protect everyone.

The University’s reopening plan, or more accurately, what plan? 

The University’s current plan for the Fall is critically flawed and unsafe. Employers have a legal obligation under the Occupational Health & Safety Act to ensure a safe workplace and are obligated by law to follow Public Health and provincial policies and guidelines.

After swift action by students, staff, and faculty, the University of Toronto administration announced that as part of its strategy for the Fall–it will require all those intending to be physically present at the University to be vaccinated against COVID-19 by September 13th for first doses and by October 15th for second doses. Proof of partial or full vaccination will be required by these respective dates via UCheck. We recognize that, in these circumstances, employers have a right to implement a vaccine policy (CUPE National).

We strongly recommend that CUPE members get vaccinated as soon as they are able to do so. The World Health Organization and the Public Health Agency of Canada have indicated that the risks of transmission of COVID-19 include inhaling COVID-19 in droplets and aerosolized particles from a person who is breathing, talking, sneezing, coughing, singing and shouting.

Vaccination offers substantial protection against severe health outcomes, including hospitalization and death. However, current vaccine formulations may have reduced efficacy against the variants of concerns. This is why it’s even more important to adhere to the precautionary principle by consistently using multiple preventive practices at once, beyond over relying on increasing vaccination rates.

Members who have questions or concerns about getting an approved vaccine should consult with their health care professional. For members who cannot be vaccinated due to medical reasons (as determined by a professional), as well as religious reasons, the employer is required to find alternative work assignments. As a union, we are committed to defending the labour rights of any member regardless of vaccination status.

Unfortunately, lobbying from University of Toronto and the Council of Ontario Universities (COU), which represents university presidents, has resulted in the Ministry of Colleges and Universities’ announcing last week that post-secondary institutions are exempted from capacity limits that are meant to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 transmission. We join the Ontario Colleges and University Faculty Association’s alarm at these last-minute guidelines for postsecondary education that blatantly ignore science and public health experts and irresponsibly compromise health and safety for all.

In our conversations with allied unions representing students, faculty and staff (CUPE 3902, UTFA, and USW 1998) it has become clear that only in solidarity will you be able to fight the university’s irresponsible back to campus plan. CUPE 3907 has been and will continue to be an active voice in these conversations.  Following our Joint Health and Safety meeting on August 31st, we are not confident that the OISE senior administration has taken enough precautions in the areas of ventilation, filtration, building and classroom capacity limits and enforcement, Legionella, and other areas of protection to ensure safety and to address and mitigate the risk of airborne transmission of COVID-19.

We urge you to participate in these conversations and make your voice heard. Below you will find a list of resources to learn more about the university’s unsafe reopening plan. As the school year begins CUPE 3907 is actively looking for stewards in each department to act as your departmental liaison to your union exec. This could be a great step towards ensuring your safety and the safety of your colleagues.

Reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns or would like to participate more actively in the solidarity actions taking place across campus. Our first General Membership Meeting will be held on September 30th at 5pm on Zoom. This will be a great chance to learn more, ask questions, and fight back.

– CUPE 3907 executive committee

Resources

EVENT Sep 9, 2021 07:00 PM: Is it safe enough to return to campus? What do public health scientists say?

Vaccines & Worker’s rights

Workplace safety

UofT Updates

Statements from other faculty associations, labour and student unions

Union Leadership Vacancies

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Nominations for the following CUPE 3907 positions are open:

  • CRO
  • Stewards: APHD, CTL, SJE, LHAE
  • Bargaining Support Committee
  • Standing Committees
  • FAF Committee Members
  • Trustees

Returning Officer

The Returning Officer shall hold office for one (1) year and shall receive honoraria of $500 for the year. The Returning Officer shall be a member of the Local who is neither an officer nor a candidate for office, and shall have the full responsibility for establishing and regulating voting procedures for elections or by-elections held in the Local including, but not limited to, those for Executive Officers, Trustees, the Bargaining Committee, and convention delegates. More details available in the Bylaws (Article 14)

Departmental Stewards

Serving as a steward is a great way to become involved in the union, assist members, and ensure that issues affecting graduate workers in your department are brought to the union’s attention. Currently, there is one vacancy for EACH of the following departments: SJE, CTL, LHAE and APHD. This is a volunteer position. More details available in the Bylaws (Article 10)

If you are interested, please email the Chief Steward, Wales Wong, at chiefsteward@cupe3907.ca.

Bargaining Support Committee

Interested in supporting your CUPE local during bargaining? Join the Bargaining Support Committee!
As members of the Bargaining Support Committee, you will support in mobilizing the Local’s resources to amplify members’ voices. You are responsible for organizing fellow members, the University, and the community in support of our union’s aims in bargaining, and will organize the membership if a strike vote is needed.
If a strike is undertaken, the Bargaining Support Committee will become the Strike Committee.
If you would like more information, contact Wales Wong (chiefsteward@cupe3907.ca).
Standing Committees with paid honorarium

We also have many committees that are dedicated to issues affecting our membership:

  • Communications & Outreach Committee
  • Equity and Human Rights Committee
  • Education Committee

Financial Assistance Fund Committee Members

We need three (3) members to join the Financial Assistance Fund Committee to distribute the Hardship Fund, Child Care Fund, and UHIP Funds. The time commitment is about 2 hours.

Committee members need to be current members of CUPE 3907 on the date of the FAF committee meeting. Committee members must be available for the fund distribution meeting. Committee members will receive an honorarium of $50 for their time.

Please email treasurer@cupe3907.ca if you are interested.

Trustees

The Trustees are elected by members to act as an auditing committee on their behalf. The position will require approximately 7 hours. No past union or financial experience is required, as there are significant training. There is a $100 honorarium. Details of the position are available in the Bylaws (article 11).

2021 CUPE Ontario Convention: Highlights & Lowlights

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Written by: Alissa Cherry (President, CUPE 3907) & Justin Holloway (Vice-President, CUPE 3907)

Your CUPE Local 3907 delegates were very active and present during this year’s provincial convention. With representation at the Racialized Caucus, Women’s Caucus, and the Disabilities Caucus, and throughout the conference generally, the issues you face as a Graduate Assistant at OISE were always part of the conversation and in our minds when voting. While we support our siblings at other CUPE locals, it was also a convention that tackled serious issues of racial justice and policing, which unfortunately led to disappointment. With racial slurs being tolerated, support for violent policing, and a heated discussion on the definition of antisemitism, it became only more evident that we have work to do to support each other and our community. Unions are inherently progressive and democratic, that being said a member’s voice will always be heard whether we agree or disagree, sometimes resulting in disappointments like we witnessed at convention. We can only look forward now, and take this summer to listen to each other and stand arm in arm (at 6ft distance) with one another when they file a grievance, discuss moments of uncomfortability in the workplace, and fight for a stronger and more comprehensive collective agreement.

Solidarity with students, faculty, and staff at Laurentian University

The second day of the 2021 CUPE Ontario Convention saw discussion and voting on resolutions dealing with the university sector. CUPE represents most students and teachers working in the university sector in Ontario, so these resolutions were given their own block of time to be thoroughly considered. The very first of these was resolution #64 which called on CUPE Ontario to develop a campaign for fighting the Ford government’s failure to protect public higher education by allowing the senior administration at Laurentian University to use an inappropriate bankruptcy provision for businesses (Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act) to impose mass layoffs and austerity measures on workers at Laurentian U. There was a spirited discussion by several CUPE Ontario members who all lamented the fact that Premier Ford along with Ross Romano (the Minister for Colleges and Universities) allowed a public university in Ontario to be so financially mismanaged in the first place, and furthermore, that they also allowed this same university to financially implode without taking any real measures to intervene to alleviate the pain and suffering felt by students, faculty, and staff who weren’t at all responsible for the impropriety. To this point David Simao from CUPE Local 1281 said that “if the government isn’t insolvent then a public university shouldn’t be” and Robert Walker from CUPE Local 4207 echoed this by stating “if Laurentian is bankrupt, then Ontario is bankrupt”. Needless to say–resolution #64 passed overwhelmingly with 97% of members voting yes.

For more information on this year’s convention:

Final CUPE ON Action Plan 2021

CUPE ON Pre-Convention Newsletter

CUPE ON Day 2 Newsletter

CUPE ON Day 3 Newsletter

CUPE 3907 supports the CAUT censure of UofT

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We are deeply concerned by the silencing of Palestinian rights advocacy on our campus and workplace. As Palestinians currently undergo increased state-sanctioned violence, ethnic cleansing, and media and political silencing, it is crucial that we stand in solidarity with the Palestinian community. Furthermore, as a labour union, CUPE believes in academic freedom, fair and transparent hiring practices, and the belief that the right person should always get the job. In the most recent case of Dr. Valentina Azarova, academic freedom was not granted and the hiring process was corrupted by politically motivated decision- making to appease wealthy and powerful donors. The result of this was that the right person did not get the job.

For these reasons, the CUPE 3907 Executive Committee fully supports the Canadian Association of University Teachers’ (CAUT) censure of the University of Toronto.

CAUT, which represents 72,000 faculty and academic staff across Canada, has taken the rare and serious decision to censure the University of Toronto. CAUT has determined that the University’s administration failed “to resolve concerns regarding academic freedom stemming from a hiring scandal in the Faculty of Law”. Relying on undisputed evidence contained in a report by Mr. Thomas Cromwell, CAUT concluded that a donor/judge’s objections to Dr. Valentina Azarova, based on her scholarship on Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian Territories, influenced the University’s decision to rescind an offer of a position as Director of the International Human Rights Program. CAUT’s censure vote came one day after a group of Muslim, Arab, and Jewish organizations wrote an open letter to the University of Toronto demanding the reinstatement of the job offer to Dr. Azarova. We stand in solidarity with the CAUT censure in response to UofT’s violation of academic integrity and freedom. 

Censure is a call to collective action. As a local, CUPE 3907 will not be hosting any external guest speakers or special events until this censure is lifted. Furthermore, we call on all members to:

  • Read up and inform yourself about the CAUT censure.
  • Consider cancelling your own events or withdrawing from events with invited speakers by writing to speakers, organizers or the heads of your units informing them of the censure and asking them to respect it.
  • Organize petitions and information sessions within your unit to build momentum for unit-wide adherence
  • Join Jewish, Palestinian, Black, Indigenous and Racialized Faculty Defending Academic Freedom and Supporting a Free Palestine by signing and sharing this petition.
  • Attend one of the events listed below to learn more.

What is a Censure?

A Censure is a sanction in which academic staff are asked not to accept appointments or speaking engagements at the university or elsewhere in the name of the university until changes are made. Think of this as a moment in history when our silence speaks louder than any speaking engagement could.

Why was this the course of action taken?

A Censure is a course of action that requires the university to take notice. As an educational institution known for bringing some of the greatest thinkers together to learn from one another, this sanction directly affects the foundation of the university. It makes us all stop and think about our own academic freedoms and how we can support one another in our jobs as producers of knowledge.

What happens next? 

We plan to stand in solidarity with the CAUT Censure until it is lifted. This in no way should affect your employment. If you find resistance in your workplace for expressing your support for the CAUT censure, please contact our Chief Steward, Wales Wong, at chiefsteward@cupe3907.ca. If you have any questions about the censure or you GAship in relation to the censure please do not hesitate to contact us.

EVENTS

Censuring the Neo Liberal University: Academic Freedom, Donors and Equity.

Thursday, May 20th, 4pm.
A Panel on the Censure of The University of Toronto organized by Scholars Strike Canada. More information (including link) here.

Speakers:
Anver Emon, Professor of Law and History, University of Toronto
Melanie J. Newton, Associate Professor, Department of History, University of Toronto
Denise G. Réaume, Professor, Faculty of Law, University of Toronto
Dave Robinson, CAUT Executive Director
Hosted by Min Sook Lee and Beverley Bain.

Labour Solidarity and Palestinian Resistance.

Saturday, May 22 at 1:00 PM.
Join Labour4Palestine – Canada* for a webinar and urgent discussion with Palestinian labour leaders and activists on the ground in Jerusalem and the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

The labour movement in Canada has an important role to play in supporting Palestinian resistance and standing in solidarity with workers and people directly affected. Please register here.

Speakers:
Budour Hassan: Writer and legal researcher for Jerusalem Center for Legal Aid and Human Rights
Riham Abu Aita: Active member of the Palestinian Journalists Union
Jamal Juma: Executive Committee Member of the Palestine New Federation of Trade Unions and Secretariat Member of the Boycott National Committee (BNC)
With introductory remarks from Moe Alqasem: President CUPE 1281

Additional speakers may be announced closer to the date.

CUPE 3907 endorses the resolution by the Divestment and Beyond Coalition at UofT

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At our AGM on April 19, CUPE 3907 members voted to unanimously endorse the following resolution by the Divestment and Beyond Coalition at UofT

Whereas “human activities are estimated to have [already] caused approximately 1.0°C of global warming above pre-industrial levels…”

Whereas climate change related impacts “…on natural and human systems from global warming have already been observed”;

Whereas urgent action is required merely to keep average global warming to 1.5 °C or less in order to avoid “irreversible loss of the most fragile ecosystems, and crisis after crisis for the most vulnerable people and societies”;

Whereas because greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide remain in the atmosphere for thousands of years, global warming is, in effect, irreversible. To halt the warming process, global emissions of greenhouse gases must eventually reach zero. Further expansion of the world’s fossil fuel infrastructure is not compatible with this goal;

Whereas there are compelling social, ethical and fiduciary grounds for divesting from fossil fuel companies;

Whereas the Federal Government declared a climate emergency in June of 2019, and the City of Toronto declared a climate emergency in October of 2019;

Whereas numerous prominent universities have committed to full divestment from the fossil fuel industry, including the University of California, University College London, the University of Edinburgh, the University of Massachusetts, the University of British Columbia, and the University of Ottawa;

Whereas the University of Toronto has a responsibility and an opportunity to demonstrate genuine institutional leadership in the fight against dangerous climate change and in the fight for a socially just climate transition;

Be it resolved that CUPE 3907 contribute meaningfully toward fighting climate change and supporting a “Just Transition” to the green economy by calling on the University of Toronto Administration undertake the following:

  1. Declare a climate emergency at the University of Toronto and take steps to align institutional policies and practices to reflect the urgency of this declaration;
  2. Instruct the University of Toronto Asset Management Corporation (UTAM) to withdraw from, and henceforth not pursue, investments in companies that explore for or develop reserves of fossil fuels, or in companies that provide direct support for such exploration and development; immediately, extend those same instructions to advisers and managers involved with investment vehicles in which the University of Toronto is an investor, including commingled funds where the University of Toronto is not the sole investor; and subject all Long-Term Capital Appreciation Pool (i.e., “endowment”) and Expendable Funds Investment Pool (i.e., short-term working capital) investments to a system of decarbonization consistent with COP21/Paris Agreement targets for Canada;
  3. Work with the Administrations of the University of Guelph and Queen’s University and with employee groups at all three institutions in seeking parallel commitments to those specified in item #2 above from the newly formed Jointly Sponsored University Pension Plan (UPP) involving the three universities;
  4. Commit to achieving carbon neutrality (i.e., zero net GHG emissions) across the U of T by 2030;
  5. Increase the delivery of environmental and sustainability education on all three campuses and via community outreach programmes;
  6. Sign the Global Universities and Colleges for the Climate Letter (available at https://www.sdgaccord.org/climateletter)

Be it further resolved that CUPE 3907 encourages all other CUPE locals at University of Toronto to also officially endorse the Divestment and Beyond Coalition at The University of Toronto resolution.

Day of Mourning – April 28, 2021

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Yesterday, Ford’s government voted against Paid Sick Days for workers amidst a deadly third wave. In total, they have now voted against paid sick days 21 times since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

It’s time to listen to the experts. It’s time to stop the deaths and the unnecessary infections.

We are encouraging all CUPE 3907 members to join on Wednesday, April 28 at 10 AM our colleagues at 3902 to reflect together on the history of the Day of Mourning, observe a moment of silence for the more than 23,000 lives lost to COVID-19 across Canada, and guide everyone through a phone zap to call on the government to meet our demands.

  • Implement paid sick days for all workers;
  • Ensure vaccinations for all frontline workers;
  • Provide paid time off from work for vaccination;
  • Make sure there is appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for all workers;
  • Immediately end any enhanced police powers.

Do you have 10 minutes?
In the time it takes to have a coffee break, you can email and phone a politician and sign our petition to U of T to demand paid sick days for all.

  • Have a 1-on-1 organizing conversation. Take the time to talk to and organize your co-workers. Then get them to affirm their support by signing our petition for paid sick days for all U of T employees. Change happens at the local level too!
  • Call and email your Member of Provincial Parliament. Tell them you don’t want more policing; you want paid sick days that are employer-paid, permanent, universal and adequate.
  • Join us on May 1st at 11 AM for the launch of Decent Work campaign. A decent work agenda must include not only paid sick days, but fair wages, equal benefits, hours we can live on and more.
  • Make it public! Here is a media suite including images for Facebook, Twitter, Zoom and Email. Post on social media using hashtags:  #10for10 #PaidSickDays

2021-2022 Executive Elections Results

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Here are the results of this year’s elections. Please see more details about the election from Results.

President: Alissa Cherry (Acclaimed)

Vice-President: Justin Holloway

Recording Secretary: Diana Barrero (Acclaimed)

Treasurer: Ernest Obeng (Acclaimed)

Chief Steward: Wales Wong

The official results were announced during the AGM on April 19. We would like to thank all the candidates for participation. Newly elected members of the executive committee will begin their term May 1st.

CUPE 3907 Opposes the IHRA Definition of Antisemitism

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There is an international campaign underway to get governments, universities, and other institutions to adopt the IHRA definition. This definition has negatively impacted scholars and students in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and Germany, to name a few. In recent years, some of the world’s leading scholars and influential academics have been unfairly labelled as antisemitic because of their critique of Israel and its oppression of Palestinians. Among them, Black feminist scholar Angela Davis, American-based queer theorist Jasbir K. Puar, and prominent Cameroonian philosopher Achille Mbembe.

Academic Issues 

The IHRA definition of antisemitism is the product of a growing “new antisemitism movement” that seeks to redefine antisemitism to include any criticism of the Israeli state. While challenging antisemitism is vital, Canadian critics of the IHRA definition argue that the new language could “chill political expressions of criticism of Israel as well as support for Palestinian rights.”

The IHRA definition is vague. It fails to connect antisemitism to other forms of racism. The IHRA definition is being used to censor and undermine the important anti-racist and decolonial initiatives currently underway at universities across Canada.

If governments and universities adopt this definition, it will represent a direct attack on academic freedom, endangering our ability to engage in scholarship and teaching that explores facts and perspectives that are critical of the state of Israel.

For example, in 2020, two Ontario universities have been the site of false and destructive charges of antisemitism against respected international human rights scholars. In response, CAUT has initiated a process of censuring the University of Toronto. These attacks are but a small sample of documented cases, and they are deeply troubling for us as scholars and teachers.

BIRT CUPE 3907 unequivocally supports the academic freedom of its members. This freedom includes the right to pursue research and open inquiry in an honest search for knowledge that is free from institutional censorship, including that of the government. While CUPE 3907 opposes antisemitism and all forms of racism and hatred, the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Antisemitism poses a serious threat to academic freedom in our university. The IHRA definition of antisemitism misconstrues antisemitism to include a broad range of criticism of the State of Israel. The IHRA definition thus undermines important anti-racist and decolonial initiatives in Canadian educational institutions. It can also be used to censor political speech and restrict the academic freedom of teachers and researchers who have developed critical perspectives on the policies and practices of the State of Israel. Such targeted attacks will have a chilling effect on the academic freedom of our members in the classroom, in their research, and in campus politics more broadly.

For further information, please visit the website for the campaign opposing the IHRA definition of antisemitism in Canadian Universities and Colleges: https://www.noihra.ca/academic-campaign

Other Resources:

IHRA Definition At Work by Independent Jewish Voices

Criticizing Israel is not antisemitic — it’s academic freedom

Palestinian rights and the IHRA definition of antisemitism

How the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism is shielding Israel from criticism

The IHRA definition will not help fight anti-Semitism

New human rights order risks restricting criticism of Israel

Let’s keep our eyes focused on what anti-Semitism really is