Montreal, Feb 20, 2025 – The Anti-Racism Program of the CJPME Foundation (ARPCF) strongly condemns Quebec Higher Education Minister Pascale Déry’s interference in a Dawson College course on Palestine. The Minister pressured college administrators to review the content of a French course titled Palestinian Affiliations undermining academic freedom and setting a dangerous precedent for government control over curriculum. By using her political influence to challenge course content, the APRCF argues that Déry is infringing on educators’ ability to teach freely and students’ right to engage with important global issues.
“This interference is a clear example of anti-Palestinian racism, as it singles out discussions on Palestine as uniquely controversial while allowing courses on other global conflicts,” said Jamila Ewais, Lead Researcher of the ARPCF. By targeting Palestinian narratives, the minister reinforces exclusion and creates a climate of fear and intimidation for Palestinian students and their allies, who already face systemic discrimination on campus,” added Ewais.
Adding to the concern is Déry’s past affiliation with the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), a pro-Israel lobby group that advocates for policies favourable to the State of Israel, and which is known for infringing on academic freedom regarding Palestine. In 2020, CIJA tried to intervene in a confidential hiring process at the University of Toronto, prompting the university to rescind a job offer to an academic who was critical of Israel. This violation of academic freedom ultimately led to the university’s censure by the Canadian Association of University Teachers. More recently, CIJA has taken credit for initiating Déry’s investigations against Dawson and Vanier colleges over the expression of pro-Palestine sentiment on campus. This affiliation raises serious questions about pro-Israel political bias influencing Déry’s decisions.
The APRCF joins educators, unions, and academic organizations across Québec who have strongly opposed the Minister’s actions. The Fédération nationale des enseignantes et des enseignants du Québec (FNEEQ-CSN) and the Dawson Teachers’ Union have condemned this attack on academic freedom, warning that such interference pressures faculty to self-censor and restricts students from exploring diverse perspectives. “The fact that professors must defend their right to teach a legitimate academic topic highlights the growing climate of intimidation against those supporting Palestinian rights,” said Ewais.
The ARPCF urges the Québec government to retract this intervention, establish legal protections against political interference in education, and create an independent oversight body to prevent undue influence over academic content. Universities must also strengthen protections for faculty and students, ensure diverse representation in curriculum development, and formally recognize anti-Palestinian racism in provincial policies. These steps are essential to preserving academic freedom and fostering an inclusive learning environment.
About the ARPCF – The mandate of the Anti-Racism Program of the CJPME Foundation (ARPCF) is to create public awareness about racism in Canada. This mandate falls in line with the Foundation’s broader purpose of monitoring and combating manifestations of racism, xenophobia, and discrimination by increasing public awareness of such biases.
For more information, please contact Jamila Ewais, 514-389-8668
ARPCF, [email protected] www.cjpmefoundation.org
The whole or parts of this press release can be reproduced without permission.
– 30 –
Showing 1 reaction