DARA Open Letter to Concordia University and Quebec Premier on Code of Conduct Violations

September 9, 2026

Concordia University's Board of Governors approved a Code of Rights and Responsibilities (last amended in October 2024) that is grounded in the following principles: "the values of civility, equity, respect, non-discrimination and an appreciation of diversity as manifested within the University and within society-at-large". We are writing in regard to activities planned within the Faculty of Arts & Sciences that violate these laudable principles.

These activities took the form of workshops and other activities directed at incoming Arts & Science students. Many of these events were blatantly ideological and polemical. They lack any contextual connection to the educational mandate of the university. Their purpose can be inferred as the indoctrination of impressionable young students and the demonization of alternative viewpoints.

These student activities included workshops on "Palestinian Liberation", "Anti-Colonial Harm Reduction", screening of a film glorifying the suppression freedom of speech ("Discordia"), commercial sex work, and a guide to student strikes. The workshops indicate the participation of SPHR (Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights), an organization whose registration as a student club was revoked for violation of Concordia's Code of Rights and Responsibilities.

Whether or not these orientation activities were planned with administrative or academic oversight, they represent a dereliction of Concordia's duty to enforce the aforementioned Code of Rights and Responsibilities.

Colleges and universities have come under intense public scrutiny in recent years over concerns about politicization and the imposition of ideological conformity on their campuses. In this climate, orientation programs for incoming students are particularly important events, as they help to establish the environment that these students will inhabit during their life on campus. The Concordia University website provides links to many such orientation events that promise to introduce students to a culture of learning and respectful inquiry; the activities described above can only contribute to a campus environment of disrespect and intimidation.

As one of Quebec's pre-eminent institutions of higher education, Concordia bears a special responsibility to guide our youth to develop the ability to exercise critical judgment and to responsibly analyze the complexities and ambiguities of the modern world. This responsibility begins with the orientation of its incoming student body. Concordia abdicates this responsibility in allowing overtly political and divisive activities to be held under its implicit aegis. We call on Concordia's administration and on the government Ministries to whom they are responsible to urgently address this issue, and to ensure that publicly funded higher education in Quebec is not used as a vehicle for the political radicalization of its youth.

DARA Board of Directors