Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) students are planning a campus-wide walkout on Wednesday after a video circulated online showing two security guards throwing a protester to the ground and handcuffing them during a university event.
The Incident
The confrontation occurred on Friday outside TMU’s Democracy Forum, which featured Toronto MP and Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon.
In the video, the protester — identified by organizers as a TMU student — can be heard shouting:
“Get off me. You’re hurting me. I can’t breathe.”
Security then placed the student in handcuffs.
TMU’s vice-president of administration and operations, Saeed Zolfaghari, called the video “unsettling and difficult to watch.” He confirmed the two guards involved have been reassigned and will not return to campus until the university completes its review.
Student and Union Response
The protest was linked to pro-Palestine activism. Students for Justice in Palestine at TMU, which posted the video, accused the university of escalating “violence to silence pro-Palestine students.”
The group has urged students and professors to walk out of class at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday and gather at Kerr Hall Quad.
TMU’s student union also issued a statement condemning the incident:
“We unequivocally condemn what appears to be an egregious use of force, and stand by students’ right to free speech and dissent.”
University Position
Zolfaghari said the protester had been asked to leave the event for “disruptive behaviour” that violated event guidelines and TMU’s student code of non-academic conduct. Other protesters left peacefully, he noted.
Toronto Police were contacted following the incident, and the matter is now under police review.
Context
The incident comes amid heightened tensions on Canadian campuses over the Gaza conflict. Solomon has been a frequent target of pro-Palestine activists, who accuse his office of ignoring outreach attempts. His Cabbagetown constituency office was vandalized earlier this month with pro-Palestine posters.
Under Ontario’s Private Security and Investigative Services Act, security guards may use force only when “reasonably necessary” given the circumstances. Whether that threshold was met is now under scrutiny.