Students rally for divestment at MacEwan University teach-in.
The Palestinian Student Alliance hosted a teach-in outside the MacEwan University clocktower to call for divestment and disclosure regarding MacEwan investments.
Attendees sit around a picnic at the Palestinian Students Alliance teach-in on Oct. 8. Photo credit: Amanda Erickson
Student activists at MacEwan University renewed calls for the school to divest from companies linked to Israel’s military operations during a teach-in outside the clocktower in October.
The Palestinian Student Alliance (PSA) organized the event as part of its week of action. Speakers discussed the broader Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement and urged the university to disclose and withdraw its investments from corporations such as The Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and Coca-Cola, which organizers say are complicit in Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories. The BDS movement, which calls for economic and cultural pressure on Israel, is criticized the Anti-Defamation League as a way to delegitimize the existence of an Israeli state and promote anti-Israel narratives.
The PSA’s student group status was previously suspended by the Students’ Association of MacEwan University. SAMU President Nathan Poon said in an email to the Edmonton Edge that, due to student privacy reasons, SAMU “does not share information publicly regarding disciplinary measures against individual student groups or individual students.”
While SAMU oversees student clubs and events held under its jurisdiction, MacEwan University operates separately, allowing for the PSA to gather on MacEwan grounds.
“We decided it was really important to bridge a gap in really just educating students on what’s going on on their campus,” said Nour Salhi, one of the organizers.
Participants also reflected on the social and institutional barriers facing student activists, including limits on recognized campus spaces for organizing, difficulty communicating with university administration, and suspension of their student group status.
“Why are you ignoring your own students? Why are you inaccessible to your own students?” said Salhi in reference to the PSA’s attempts to contact MacEwan president Annette Trimbee and the Board of Governors.
Edmonton Edge reached out to MacEwan University. A spokesperson replied: “MacEwan University respects the right to peaceful student demonstrations on campus, and we are committed to protecting and supporting freedom of expression.”
Salhi said the PSA has faced suppression and intimidation from the institution, adding that collective pressure could push the Board of Governors to meet with the group.
Liam Ginter, who attended the protest, said that making connections through community spaces like the teach-in helped him see the issue as part of a larger global pattern of power and resistance against colonialism.
Despite heightened security around previous demonstrations, the teach-in remained peaceful, concluding with calls for transparency, disclosure, and divestment.
Editor’s clarification, January 29 2026: an earlier version of the article did not attribute a quote to Liam Ginter, who attended the protest. This has been clarified.
