[Fdu] media release re: press conference today at York

[Cynthia Wright]

http://saiayork.org/saia-blog/2014/3/23/faculty-students-civil-society-groups-condemn-york-university-for-rights-violations


Media release                                                                                      

Toronto – At 11 AM on Tuesday, March 25, 2014, civil rights organizations, student groups, and faculty members will speak out against violations of civil rights by the York University administration. They will condemn administrative suppression of the rights of student groups to free speech and free assembly. Speakers will also protest a no-trespass order against York alumnus, Hammam Farah, for his participation in peaceful protest actions at York. The press conference will convene on the ground floor of the York University Student Centre .

"As a queer filmmaker and activist,” says York faculty member John Greyson, “I'm sadly all too familiar with regimes that seek to silence and censor -- starting with the Canadian government -- and I'm proud to teach in a university that has such a vigourous tradition of activism and free speech. York must stop banning students and student groups – period."

“Of all the university's values, freedom of speech is among the most precious,” adds Penni Stewart, an Executive Board member of the Canadian Association of University Teachers, and a faculty member in York’s Sociology department. “Banning students, curtailing student organizing and constraining speech with civility codes threatens these cherished values and the integrity of the institution."

Mr. Farah, who graduated in 2007 with a degree in psychology and political science, has worked with many York groups, including Amnesty International, the Student Christian Movement, and the York University Choir. In April 2013, the York administration issued a no-trespass order against Mr. Farah for his participation in peaceful rallies organized by Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA). The administration has issued warning letters against numerous SAIA members and rescinded the group’s rights as a student club for six months.

“Our Charter Rights are under attack on our campuses,” says Hammam Farah. “It's time to ask ourselves where post-secondary education is headed in Canada as our universities become increasingly run like businesses.”

Speakers at the March 25 press conference include Tyler Willis, member of the Advisory Board of the Ontario Civil Liberties Association; Safiyah Husein, Vice-President Equity with the York Federation of Students; Hammam Farah; and York professors John Greyson and Penni Stewart.

 - End -

Contact:
David McNally

Professor of Political Science, York
416-735-5684
davidmcnally at sympatico.ca


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