Monique Jilesen has begun laying out the university's arguments in seeking an injunction to clear the encampment in the area known as King's College Circle.
The encampment was set up on May 2 and participants have said they won't leave until the school agrees to disclose investments in companies profiting from Israel's offensive in Gaza and cut ties with Israeli academic institutions. In their court filings, the protesters say the school's claims of irreparable harm are"grounded in troubling mischaracterizations" of the encampment as violent and antisemitic.
"Inconveniences to the university and discomfort by those who disagree do not outweigh these vital rights," they argue in the documents.A number of groups — including the Canadian Association of University Teachers, the Canadian Federation of Students-Ontario and a number of Jewish advocacy groups — have been granted intervener status in the case.