UBC administration is facing criticism from Indigenous organizations on and off campus for its handling of OneBC’s event last Thursday.
MLA Dallas Brodie, the sole elected member of the fringe OneBC party, as well as a number of other residential school denialists and far-right figures, appeared on campus on Jan. 22 seeking to hold a “debate” centred around the existence of unmarked graves outside former residential school sites. This was supposed to be held outside the Indian Residential School History and Dialogue Centre.
A gathering to show solidarity and support for residential school survivors outside the IRSHDC attracted hundreds before Brodie and her supporters set foot on campus and continued to grow in size and energy. One denialist, Frances Widdowson, was arrested and later released without charge after refusing to leave campus.
Indigenous groups say event should never have been allowed
A day before the event, the UBC Indigenous Student Society said it was “extremely disappointed” that the university did not issue a public statement of condemnation, and was “equally disappointed in UBC for failing to prevent this group from coming to our campus.”
The university, the ISS said, “failed” to establish “infrastructure that would allow students across all faculties to avoid harm.”
On Jan. 23, the BC Assembly of First Nations (BCAFN) issued a press release saying UBC permitting the demonstration “jeopardized the safety of First Nations students, faculty, staff, and survivors,” and ran counter to the school’s “commitments to reconciliation and partnership with BC First Nations.”
“The BCAFN upholds the large counter protest that occurred, comprised of students, staff and community members, and stands alongside all individuals who push back against anti-First Nations racism,” the statement said.
Similar sentiments were expressed by the Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs (UBCIC), which penned an open letter to President Benoit-Antoine Bacon on Monday expressing “concern and disappointment” that the event went ahead. Residential school denialism “proliferates under the guise of academic freedom and freedom of speech,” UBCIC said, and “should not be permitted in public institutions.”
“Academic institutions should be places of ethical inquiry, research, legitimate debate and knowledge production, not racism, bad faith arguments and hateful rhetoric.”
TRU, UVic both issued statements beforehand
Before OneBC appeared on their campuses late last year, both TRU and UVic issued public statements saying the group’s events were not authorized.
In a statement a week before OneBC’s arrival, TRU’s president wrote, “Our focus is on maintaining a safe, respectful environment for study, work, and campus life. To that end, we have reminded the individuals involved that they do not have permission to hold this activity at Thompson Rivers University and have issued a notice under the B.C. Trespass Act.” The statement further said the university stands with survivors and “will respond proportionately and in accordance with policy and law.”
OneBC’s Dec. 2 event at UVic was also preceded by warnings from the university that their appearance was unsanctioned. In correspondence posted online by Widdowson, UVic’s security team wrote that any event held on campus needed to be approved through the university’s space booking policy, and that “appropriate safety planning must be in place.” (The Ubyssey has confirmed the authenticity of the correspondence with UVic). The university’s message a day before about a “divisive event” on campus reaffirmed its ʔetalnəw̓əl̓ values and concluded with a request from Acting President Qwul’sih’yah’maht (Robina Thomas) to “take care of one another.”
Saanich Police were on scene when OneBC arrived and arrested a OneBC staffer who refused to leave campus.
After the group left — opposed by a significantly larger gathering in solidarity with survivors — Qwul’sih’yah’maht (Thomas) wrote in a statement, “I raise my hands with the deepest of respect – Huy tseep q’u Siem – thank you to all the respected ones who showed up to turn their backs on a potentially harmful unsanctioned event at UVic earlier today.”
Neither UVic's nor TRU’s initial statements invoked academic freedom.
UBC stands by handling
Soon after OneBC and its supporters had left campus grounds, UBC issued a statement confirming it was aware of the event in advance, and that campus security made anticipatory plans “focused on ensuring the safety and security of the campus community and visitors.”
The statement also said the university “is fundamentally committed to upholding free inquiry, the free exchange of ideas and opinion, academic freedom, diversity of perspective, and reasoned debate.”
In response to the criticism from the ISS, BCAFN and UBCIC, university spokesperson Matthew Ramsey said the UBC has supported Indigenous community members and will continue to do so, noting a Jan. 19 event on residential school denialism and a Jan. 22 “Indigenous Strength and Solidarity Event.” “UBC’s commitment to Truth and Reconciliation is clear and enduring,” Ramsey said. He also referred The Ubyssey to the IRSHDC’s statement from Dec. 3 addressing the “coherent and overwhelming” record on residential schools.
The AMS declined to comment on the university’s statements invoking academic freedom, referring The Ubyssey to its statement from Jan. 22 supporting Indigenous solidarity demonstrators.
The Faculty Association did not respond to questions about their position on the day’s affairs.
Joey Hansen, executive director of the Association of Administrative and Professional Staff of UBC, said in an interview that he agrees with the university’s decision to allow the event to proceed, but respects the positions of Indigenous organizations who argue otherwise. “If the university forbade them from coming to campus, everything would have been about the university silencing them.” Instead, the community loudly but peacefully let OneBC know they weren’t welcome, Hansen said.
“I think the university handled the event about as well as it could have,” he said.
Hansen also said the university was “very respectful” of Indigenous employees who opted to work remotely while OneBC was on campus.
Photos from the CBC’s reporting indicate a liaison officer — a type of police officer specifically trained to interface with demonstration organizers — was present when OneBC came to UVic. Liaison officers have previously been deployed to UBC to respond to other large-scale events, such as the Palestine solidarity protests in the summer of 2024, but no liaison officer was visible on Jan. 22. The Ubyssey counted about a dozen officers that day, which is disproportionately fewer officers than other police responses to recent road and building occupations on campus.
The RCMP did not respond to questions from The Ubyssey.
OneBC hints at “return to campus in the future”
Brodie sent the university and RCMP a three-page letter on Jan. 26, describing the school’s handling of the day as “a profound failure to uphold basic standards of public safety, neutrality, and freedom of expression. She called for an apology for “the failure of campus security and police to protect us”.
Additionally, Brodie requested a “detailed explanation of what specific steps UBC administration, UBC Campus Security, and the RCMP will take to ensure that we can safely return to campus in the future.”
A petition has also been released on the OneBC website, entitled “Defund the Radical Leftist University of British Columbia,” echoing a similar petition created after their appearance on UVic’s campus.
UBC has not commented on the letter, the petition or plans for how it will handle OneBC’s possible return.
