On September 17, 2018, Halima Al-Hatimy, a former McMaster graduate student, will be attending mediation with McMaster University at the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario after they admitted to their campus security and special constable racially carding her twice, intimidating and harassing her, and tracking her non-violent political activity after protesting against their smoking ban. Halima has been a vocal critic of McMaster University’s prejudicial attitude towards medical cannabis especially after they banned a legitimately prescribed route of medical cannabis administration, medically known as inhalation off campus property. Medical doctors may prescribe inhalation of medical cannabis by way of smoking or vaporizing to patients who suffer from traumatic flashbacks or acute pain flare-ups. Some patients may need to inhale their medication every two hours to manage their symptoms.

By banning the inhalation of medical cannabis on campus, McMaster University puts vulnerable members of the university community at risk for poorly managed medical symptoms such as pain, anxiety, and traumatic flashbacks. This not only compromises the health and wellness of medical cannabis users, it also creates a significant barrier to participating in employment and school at McMaster University. In addition, they create a hostile and toxic environment for medical users by unnecessarily burdening them and reducing the administration of their prescribed medication to an “unhealthy” behavior. Institutions such as University of Toronto and University of Guelph have lauded McMaster’s actions and announced they will also implement a similar policy in lockstep with McMaster. This is alarming considering this policy creates a major systemic barrier to access for medical users on university campuses throughout the province, and potentially the country. 

McMaster University has a history of deploying police force to suppress dissent on campus. Recently, they had a legal proceeding against them for carding, intimidating, harassing, aggressively shouting at and putting an unlawful trespass ban on a civil rights student organizer on campus. They have made it clear that they are intolerant and unwelcoming of human rights advocacy and medical cannabis use on their campus. In January 2016, McMaster University hired former Chief of Police, Glenn DeCaire as Director of Security and Parking Services against very vocal student opposition. Students and civil liberties activists vehemently opposed this decision calling DeCaire to be removed with concerns that he may bring his unjust and biased policing practices to McMaster University campus. 

In 2015, Glenn DeCaire was publicly exposed for his racist carding practice particularly targeting Hamilton’s Black population. In fact, Ruth Goba from the Ontario Human Rights Commission wrote a letter criticizing the former Chief’s policing practice citing it as a “textbook example of racial profiling” and an “unjustifiable” use of force. Shortly after this incident, DeCaire stepped down before the end of his term announcing that he would be joining McMaster University as Director of Security and Parking Services. Since DeCaire started his term at the university there has been increased complaints of unlawful use of police force and the aggressive suppression of political dissent. Students have expressed that they feel bullied and alienated by the university, but have been too afraid to speak out against their discriminatory practices for fear of reprisal.

McMaster University abjectly refuses to listen to students who speak out against their administrative decisions, and they have demonstrated total disregard for a fair, just and democratic process. McMaster University is the largest and most impactful institution and employer in the City of Hamilton. Their policies do not only influence what happens to people on their property, but what happens to people throughout the entire city. They must be held to a higher standard in the way they develop their policies and how they treat the most vulnerable among us. By signing this petition you can help a growing civil liberties student and community movement to make McMaster University a safer and more accommodating place to be for all people.

We are advocating the following changes to McMaster University policing policies:

1. A democratic student oversight of campus police

2. Abolish the unconstitutional practice of carding especially racially motivated carding on campus.

3. Remove Glenn DeCaire from office. He has demonstrated poor judgment, implicit bias against racial minorities and other marginalized groups, and an intolerance to political dissent

4. Remove the special constable system on campus. Security guards are sufficient security measures. Instituting a special constable system on university campuses is very rare and an excessive security measure especially given how McMaster University has proven to misuse this power.