Pro-Palestinian protesters have set up encampments at two more British Columbia universities, as a wave of demonstrations at North American post-secondary institutions continued to spread.
The University of Victoria confirmed Wednesday that a protest site had been established on campus, saying the school was “taking a calm and thoughtful approach” to minimizing disruptions stemming from the encampment in its quad.
“We encourage thoughtful, reasoned and academic discourse on current issues and maintain that these discussions must take place in an environment free from discrimination, harassment and hate speech of any kind,” a statement from the university said. “Out of an abundance of caution, campus security may be monitoring access to buildings near the demonstration and may ask people for information prior to entering these buildings.”
Photos on social media show tents with Palestinian flags and signs with slogans, although no barriers had been set up around the encampment’s perimeter. Security officers can be seen in some pictures watching protesters.
An official at Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo confirmed Wednesday a camp site had been set up on its campus too.
The university said in a statement that it is “monitoring the situation on our Nanaimo campus and [is] in contact with local RCMP.”
An encampment has entered its third day at the University of British Columbia’s Point Grey campus in Vancouver, where protesters stockpiled food, water and other supplies in preparation for a prolonged stay. In Quebec, a judge rejected an injunction request from two students at Montreal’s McGill University to move a protest camp further away from school buildings, citing limited evidence of potential harms to students if the encampment remained in place.
McGill University remained neutral in the injunction request but had asked police to help to dismantle the camp, with authorities saying they were evaluating the situation and “advocating for a peaceful outcome.” Protest camps at Columbia University in New York and the University of California-Los Angeles have resulted in clashes, either between attendees and police or counter-protesters.
In Victoria, protest group Free Palestine B.C. said in a post on Instagram that protesters are demanding the university “divest from all investments” connected to companies with Israeli business interests.
The post also said protesters are demanding that the University of Victoria “cease partnering with Israeli academic institutions that constrain Palestinian rights.”..
Source: vancouversun.com/
Monday, April 20, 2026
