On Monday, May 13, the start of the first summer session got underway at UBC Okanagan and students made their way to their respective classes.
However, the start of the new term was overshadowed by other students and community members who established an encampment in the heart of the campus.
“The students of UBC Okanagan are here today at this encampment in solidarity with Gaza and Palestine and with certain demands for our university to end their complicity with Israel's apartheid and genocide,” Cecilia, who did not want to share her last name, told KelownaNow this past Sunday.
The encampment in Kelowna mirrors another at the main UBC campus in Vancouver, where demonstrators are calling for the university to divest from “companies complicit in the Israeli apartheid regime," alongside four other demands.
Surrounded by a wall of wood pallets covered in handwritten signs are 15 or so tents, numerous flags and supplies needed to stay out in the elements.
When entering the camp, patrons are asked to respect their posted community agreements, which consist of 10 guidelines:
“To date, it seems like the UBC administration and security have been recognizing our constitutional right to peaceful protest,” Cecilia explained.
Cecilia added that when the encampment first started, members of the security team on campus told the protesters they were not allowed to use the public washrooms in a nearby building.
After some pushback, the protestors were eventually allowed to use the washroom and have been doing so ever since.
“We've maintained access to one washroom on campus,” said Cecilia.
“However, members of the encampment often find themselves being followed by security to the bathroom or around campus generally.”
Food-wise, the encampment has survived on the support of members of the community who have been dropping off meals and other supplies.
On the encampment’s Instagram account is a link to a list of supplies and ways to donate to their cause.
Cecilia added that their calls to the community have generally been “responded to immediately,” mentioning that they’ve received enough food at times to donate some to local homeless people.
“The support from faculty … from other students and just from people in Kelowna has been growing and really palpable, so that's been motivating,” said Cecilia.
There is no definite number of people participating in the encampment as people come and go, including those who have been stopping by to chip away at their homework from classes.
On the first day of the encampment, a rally was held with members of the community, which involved chants, speeches and dancing in solidarity with Palestine.
Cecilia said a vigil was also held as well as other activities that included Indigenous musicians and artists stopping by.
“Being here in a shared space is an act of community building and community building takes work like any relationship building does,” explained Cecilia.
“And so, of course, there's moments where we're tired, or we're really sad, or we're frustrated with the lack of UBC administration's response and so naturally, there's a bit of ebb and flow, but overall, we wouldn't be here together if it didn't feel worth it.”
As for the requirement of wearing a face mask when in the encampment, Cecilia claimed it was to protect protestors from catching illnesses and potential doxxing, which is defined as the act of publishing private or identifying information about a person on the internet.
“We're confident in being here because we are here in solidarity with Palestine and also there's a degree of privacy that everyone likes to maintain,” added Cecilia.
Cecilia and the others at the site are unsure how long they will be at the encampment, but they don’t plan on leaving until they see action from the university.
“We are here until UBC meets our demands and it’s hard to know when that will be,” she added.
On May 16, UBC President and Vice-Chancellor Benoit-Antoine Bacon released a statement discussing the five demands made by the camps in Vancouver and Kelowna and it can be read at this link.
“We hope our institution will listen,” added Cecilia.
“And set a new precedent by divesting from arms dealers, surveillance technology, etc.”
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