A group of protestors gathered at Queen’s to criticize Canadian foreign policy and a planned appearance by Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Anita Anand.
The demonstration was organized in response to an event where Anand had been expected to speak in Wallace Hall in the JDUC. Protestors met just outside the JDUC at University St. and Union St. at 11:30 a.m., with about 20 protestors in attendance.
Anand ultimately didn’t attend the event, with Media Relations Officer for Queen’s, Julie Brown, writing in an e-mail to The Journal that Anand was unable to attend due to “the minister’s schedule,” adding it will be rescheduled at a later date. However, that didn’t deter protestors.
Ariel Salzmann, associate professor in the Department of History at Queen’s, said she attended the protest to call on the federal government to prioritize international law in its foreign policy decisions.
“I think we have to show up to tell Prime Minister Carney and his administration that they have to start conducting a real middle power strategy by siding with international law,” Salzmann said.
She said she attended as a member of the Queen’s University Faculty Association (QUFA), which recently held an advisory vote supporting divestment of faculty pension funds from companies linked to armed conflict.
READ MORE: Motion to divest pensions from companies profiting from war passed by QUFA
“This is an advisory vote for the collective pension,” she said. “It’s not binding, but it sends a clear message of where our priorities are, and they’re on the side of human rights.”
QUFA represents faculty members at Queen’s and advocates on issues related to employment conditions and broader university governance.
Salzmann said the protest remained important even after Anand didn’t attend the scheduled event.
Francois Edward Dion, ArtSci ’26, said he attended the protest to criticize Canada’s approach to international conflicts, including those involving Iran and Palestine.
“We’re here protesting Canada’s refusal to acknowledge reality in Iran, Palestine, and across the global south,” Dion said.
Dion said he also believes Queen’s decision to host Anand conflicted with the university’s stated position of institutional neutrality.
Queen’s policy on institutional neutrality generally states that the University doesn’t take official positions on political issues unrelated to its core academic mission.
Christopher Logstrup, a member of the Kingston New Democratic Party who attended the protest, said public demonstrations remain important even when political figures aren’t present.
“It’s important to show people what’s happening,” he said.
Margaret Hughes, who said she receives a Queen’s pension through her late husband, a former professor at the University, said she attended to express concern about the treatment of Palestinians.
Hughes said she thinks what’s being done to the Palestinians for the last hundred years has been unconscionable.
Tags
Anita Anand, Foreign Affairs, Gaza, Protest
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