September 20, 2024
MONTREAL – As a result of B’nai Brith Canada’s advocacy, McGill University recently took action against the Post-Graduate Students’ Society (PGSS) because it failed to rescind a series of anti-Israel motions adopted between December 2023 and February 2024.
McGill’s decision, which took the form of noting the PGSS in default under its Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with the university, was triggered by the failure of negotiations between the two parties following the institution of legal proceedings from an unnamed student plaintiff backed by B’nai Brith.
“We are pleased that McGill is finally taking concrete steps to end this inglorious saga,” said Henry Topas, B’nai Brith Canada’s Quebec Regional Director. “We urge the PGSS to do the right thing and cooperate with McGill before more students are negatively impacted by this situation.”
This notice of default follows the Provisional Agreement reached over the summer between the student plaintiff represented by Tina Silverstein and Matthew Meland from Fishman Flanz Meland Paquin LLP and backed by B’nai Brith, and the PGSS whereby the PGSS temporarily agreed not to implement the motions, and McGill agreed to note the PGSS in default if negotiations failed between them or if the PGSS attempted to implement the motions.
Unless McGill and the PGSS reach a compromise to preserve the MoA or the PGSS cures its default, the PGSS could lose its legal accreditation and ability to receive funding from the university.
The motions at the heart of this matter were adopted by the PGSS Council in late 2023 and the PGSS’ General Assembly in early 2024 as a show of support for a referendum by the Students’ Society of McGill University (SSMU) — the PGSS’s undergraduate equivalent — on a so-called “Policy Against Genocide in Palestine.” Among other issues, this policy omitted any mention of Hamas’ brutal Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel. It was declared unconstitutional by McGill and its ratification was paused because of an interlocutory injunction obtained in a separate legal challenge backed by B’nai Brith.
“B’nai Brith will continue to support the students fighting hateful policies at PGSS,” said Richard Robertson, B’nai Brith Canada’s Director of Research and Advocacy. “McGill’s decision to hold PGSS accountable should serve as a model for other institutions dealing with student associations that are failing their members.”
