“No university should stand for antisemitism or votes contrary to the rule of law,” B’nai Brith Canada stated.

The president of McGill University has come out strongly against a recent student referendum that has dangerous implications for Jewish students, B’nai Brith Canada said in a press release Thursday afternoon.

On Monday, the Students’ Society at McGill University (SSMU) announced the endorsement via referendum of a document that accuses Israel of engaging in “settler-colonial apartheid against Palestinians” and committing SSMU to boycotting all entities allegedly “complicit” in this activity, among other measures, the Jewish human rights organization explained.

SSMU proceeded with the referendum despite an interim order from its own Judicial Board on March 13 stating that the question should be removed from the ballot until a full ruling on its legality could be made.

Immediately after the referendum concluded, B’nai Brith reached out to the McGill Administration and insisted they withhold fees from SSMU in order to protect Jewish students.

On Wednesday, McGill Principal and Vice-Chancellor Suzanne Fortier, in an email to B’nai Brith, stated that the university considers the referendum “to be inconsistent with the SSMU constitution as well as previous decisions by its internal governance bodies.

“We are also concerned about alleged irregularities in the referendum process. These views have been communicated to the SSMU leadership, and we advised them to take prompt and appropriate remedial action consistent with SSMU’s obligations under its Memorandum of Agreement with the University, failing which the University will take action,” Fortier said.

Michael Mostyn, Chief Executive Officer of B’nai Brith Canada, said he was “encouraged by this early and principled statement of intent by the McGill Administration.

“No university should stand for antisemitism or votes contrary to the rule of law, and funds should not be provided to student organizations that are guilty of this conduct,” he said.

“B’nai Brith will remain actively engaged in this issue until justice is done and SSMU rescinds its extreme attacks against Jewish life on campus,” Mostyn vowed.

Photo: McGill Principal and Vice-Chancellor Suzanne Fortier. (McGill.ca)