Anti-Israel protests at Concordia University last Thursday in which there were words and actions reminiscent of the Nazis has sparked an outcry in Montreal, across Canada and around the world. The protests took place as part of a two-day strike by hundreds of students from Concordia and McGill Universities, and Dawson College. Dawson and Concordia’s Hall Building closed for the day citing safety concerns.
At one point, the entire Hall Building at Concordia had been broken into and occupied by a mob and video clips showed the protesters breaking down doors, breaking lights and glass and spraying graffiti on walls and lockers. Concordia security tried to stop the protesters, but they flooded the main floor of the Hall building, where they overturned garbage cans and flooded in. Police are looking into an alleged assault on a security guard and alleged acts of mischief.
One protester Mai Abdulhadi, a franchisee owner/operator of the Second Cup location at the Jewish General Hospital, was videoed saying "the final solution is coming your way," to pro-Israel counter protesters, and giving the Nazi salute with several others. After the evidence of her actions came to light, Second Cup terminated her franchisee agreement yesterday. Second Cup stated that it "has zero tolerance for hate speech. In coordination with the hospital, we shut down the franchisee's café and are terminating their franchise agreement. This franchisee's actions are not only a breach of our franchise agreement, they also violate the values of inclusion and community we stand for at Second Cup."
For full story and reactions see The Suburban on Wednesday.
