Provost Feridun Hamdullahpur's threatening letter to students
The letter below was sent by the Provost to the entire university community in the context of the campus police's confiscation of Israeli Apartheid Week posters from SAIA members
See SAIA's official reply here >>>
Dear members of the Carleton community:
In recent days, several incidents have been brought to the University's attention regarding behaviour that has been received by many as hurtful and discriminatory to some students on campus. These actions, which are a rare phenomenon at Carleton University, appear to be related to the serious and tragic conflict that recently took place in the Middle East.
As members of the Carleton community, you are all aware that universities across Canada take extraordinary measures to ensure their campuses remain the cornerstone of free speech and open civil dialogue. In this regard, Carleton University is both a champion and leader. You need to look no further than this current academic year to know that Carleton and its students are exceedingly capable of thoughtfully engaging in vigorous and sometimes contentious debates.
In protecting our community's right to free speech, we must also be vigilant to ensure that our campus environment remains an entirely respectful one, where all students and other members of our community, regardless of their race, ethnic background or religion can achieve academic success and personal growth. They should be able to take part in their everyday activities without regard for who they are as a person, their beliefs, and their personal safety.
In stating this, I would like to make the following point very clear to all students as well as to our campus community in general. Carleton University, regardless of the circumstances, cannot and will not tolerate actions that infringe or contravene the Ontario Human Rights Code and Carleton's own University Human Rights Policy and Procedures. Discrimination, harassment, and intolerance which take the form of inappropriately challenging or questioning a person's race or beliefs are actions that are contrary to the mission of Carleton University and put in peril the essence of the Canadian university experience.
We understand that some events may be planned which may be related to some serious and emotional world issues. I would therefore ask everyone to take a few moments to become familiar with the Carleton University Human Rights Policy and Procedures and the Student Rights and Responsibilities Policy. Both documents play an important role at the University and provide us with guidance towards civil and collegial behaviour. However, they are also tools to be used to address inappropriate behaviours including discrimination and harassment. Among other sanctions that may be applied under these policies, students can be withdrawn from their studies indefinitely. Note that under the authority of these policies, all reported incidents of racial or religious intolerance will be investigated vigorously and addressed regardless of the persons or groups involved.
All members of the University community ought to be assured that the University will thoroughly investigate every complaint of inappropriate behavior, and will strictly monitor the use of University space to guard against discrimination, harassment and other activities in violation of relevant law and codes of conduct.
Above all else, universities are meant to be institutions that facilitate and encourage open academic discourse. Importantly, the imperative nature of these discussions go hand in hand with the responsibility to conduct ourselves in a manner that is respectful and that is consistent with the inherent values of Canada. Please join me and your fellow students in making every effort to ensure that Carleton's campus remains a model of tolerance to which other institutions, both in Canada and abroad, will continue to aspire.
Yours sincerely,
Feridun Hamdullahpur
Interim Provost and Vice-President (academic)
http://carleton.ca/provost/
provost@carleton.ca
