SAR’s Academic Freedom Monitoring Project investigates and reports attacks on higher education with the aim of raising awareness, generating advocacy, and increasing protection for scholars, students, and academic communities. Starting July 1, 2026, SAR no longer publishes reports for the incidents that it records. SAR continues to monitor and record incidents that will be used in the annual Free to Think report. This page provides a record of incidents reported up to that date. Learn more about the Academic Freedom Monitoring Project.

Date of Incident: May 20, 2024

Attack Types: Killings, Violence, Disappearances

Institution(s):University of Quebec in Montreal

Region & Country:Americas | Canada

New or Ongoing:New Incident

On May 20, 2024, Montreal city police (Service de police de la Ville de Montréal – SPVM) used force, including chemical irritants and batons, to disperse a group of pro-Palestinian students protesting near the University of Quebec in Montreal (UQAM).

A group of students initially set up an encampment on UQAM grounds on May 12th. On May 20, a group of students marched from the encampment and attempted to block an intersection – at Saint-Urbain Street and Président-Kennedy Avenue – near the university. According to the protesters, they planned to occupy the space with music and banners and form a “temporary zone of autonomy for a liberated Palestine.”

Police arrived on site and began to try and disperse the protesters shortly afterwards. According to a police spokesperson, officers engaged in discussions with the protesters. When the protesters refused to move, officers used chemical irritants and batons to disperse them. Police also reported that some protesters rushed towards them and assaulted them. Videos posted online show police using chemical gas, shields, and batons to push back protesters who held umbrellas open in front of them. The group SolidaritePalestine à l’UQAM reported on social media that police injured several people.

Scholars at Risk is concerned with force, including chemical irritants and batons, to disperse students exercising their peaceful rights to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly—conduct that is expressly protected by international human rights instruments including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. State authorities have a responsibility to refrain from restricting the nonviolent exercise of such rights. In addition to the harm to the immediate victims, the use of force to restrict or deter nonviolent student expression undermines academic freedom and democratic society more generally

Sources:
https://montrealgazette.com/news/local-news/montreal-police-used-gas-batons-on-pro-palestinian-protesters
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/uqam-rector-threatens-encampment-with-injunction-request-after-clashes-with-police-1.7210152
https://montreal.citynews.ca/2024/05/21/clash-police-palestinian-protesters-uqam/
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ehnMj1xQ_INkuiYtc-jWdTi_A3-BNFiv/view