By an Eyeopener staff member
Disclaimer: Due to safety concerns, The Eyeopener has granted anonymity for sources who expressed concern. The Eye has verified these sources.
A collection of faculty and campus groups at Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) have sent university president Mohamed Lachemi two separate letters expressing concerns about the presence of Magen Herut—a “Jewish community safety and patrol group”—on campus.
The letters were sent after members of Magen Herut filmed TMU community members and allegedly verbally assaulted them while attending two pro-Palestinian events— a sit-in and a panel on campus on Oct. 29 and Oct. 31, according to a faculty member** and a member of Students for Justice in Palestine* (SJP) who were involved in the creation of the separate letters.
Both letters were obtained by The Eyeopener after they were delivered to the president. A letter written and signed by 20 faculty members was sent to Lachemi on Nov. 4 and a letter written and signed by 12 campus groups was sent to Lachemi on Nov. 11.
The letter sent by faculty read, in part, “Student safety cannot be guaranteed while Magen Herut is permitted to operate within our community.”
The letter sent by the campus groups stated, “Magen Herut must be banned from the TMU campus, and safety measures must be taken to prevent further intimidation of Palestinian students and allies.”
In an emailed statement sent to The Eye on Nov. 15, Saeed Zolfaghari, vice-president, administration and operations at TMU said the university received both letters and responded to both, stating they are “taking this issue very seriously.”
The statement also reads that “only Toronto Police Service and TMU’s Community Safety and Security team have the authority to enforce the law on our campus. No one else is authorized to provide security services on campus.”
In an emailed statement sent to The Eye on Nov. 15, Aaron Hadida, the founder of Magen Herut Canada said members of the group “periodically” attend campus to ensure that “free-speech” from various groups on campus does not become “hate speech.”
Magen Herut’s statement also reads they are there to provide a “visible presence to both assure the Jewish students that someone is there to offer oversight and protection against threats of violence.” It adds that members may also act as a “visible physical deterrent to any student who may wish to escalate their hateful views to physical intimidation or violence.”
The letter from faculty detailed recent incidents involving the Magen Herut, including allegations of harassment during two events on campus dealing with the ongoing war between the State of Israel and Hamas.
According to the letter sent by faculty, on Oct. 29, an individual wearing a Magen Herut badge attended a pro-Palestine sit-in organized by the SJP and TMU faculty groups at the Sheldon & Tracy Levy Student Learning Centre (SLC).
The letter adds that campus security did not intervene despite a complaint being formally filed by a student and further claims that TMU’s security response has been “lacking,” stating that students and faculty felt unsafe and unsupported during this event.
Student groups also addressed this incident in their letter stating that participants were allegedly verbally harassed by a “fellow student” and that “a member of Magen Herut was also present inside the SLC during the same sit-in, filming and harassing students.”
After filing a complaint, the campus group’s letter states that “multiple students asked TMU security why they did not intervene when students were being harassed, and the response was that the security was there to watch and let students ‘do their thing.'”
The Eye reached out to campus security on Nov. 14 and 15 for comment about their response to the complaint filed and about their security response to these allegations but has not received a response in time for publication
The letter from faculty further states that during an event on Oct. 31 jointly co-sponsored by multiple campus groups between faculty and students, “an individual with a Magen Herut badge on his arm was filming the speakers and audience members.” The individual was seen wearing “tactical gear” and his “face except for his eyes” were covered.
It adds that his “presence sent a chill among the faculty and students in attendance.”
The faculty members called on the administration “to take immediate steps” to ban Magen Herut in their letter to Lachemi.
TMU’s administration responded to the faculty’s letter on Wednesday through an email from Zolfaghari, according to the faculty member**. However, the faculty member said the university did not address their core demand in their response.
“Our demand has been very clear. We want a formal statement that explicitly bars Magen Herut from campus,” the faculty member said.
The university also responded to the campus group letter on Friday through an email from Zolfaghari, according to the SJP member*. The response states campus security will “continue to patrol our campus and take action in cases where such individuals pose a security risk and/or breach university policies.”
The faculty member expressed their frustration about the school’s handling of this issue as well as alleged “anti-Palestinian racism” on campus and wants more to be done.
“TMU administration has not yet issued a statement publicly acknowledging anti-Palestinian racism,” said the member. “Without that acknowledgement…the rest of the administrative team is unable to recognize that problem and respond appropriately.”
The Eye reached out to the school for comment about their acknowledgement regarding anti-Palestinian racism but has not received a response in time for publication.
An SJP* member who signed the student campus group letter shared similar concerns after attending the Oct. 31 panel, describing how Magen Herut’s presence disrupted what was meant to be a “beautiful event.”
“[SJP] asked that person multiple times to sit down and to stop filming,” said the SJP member. “And then, as he was leaving towards the end of the event, we saw his badge.”
The blue and white badge for Magen Herut was attached to the side of the individual’s jacket.
“Multiple SJP members don’t feel comfortable being on this campus anymore,” said the SJP member.
*This is a member of the SJP who wished to remain anonymous due to personal safety concerns. The Eye has verified this source.
**This is a member of the faculty at TMU who wished to remain anonymous due to personal safety concerns. The Eye has verified this source.
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