The president of York University’s undergraduate students’ union says the university is trying to silence the student group by threatening to withdraw its certification in response to a statement that provoked widespread outrage after the Hamas attack on Israel.
Ashley D’Souza, president of the York Federation of Students, said he won’t retract the statement and won’t step down, despite the university’s demand that he and the entire student union executive resign. He said the YFS, which represents the university’s more than 50,000 undergraduate students, is consulting with lawyers as it weighs how to respond to the administration’s demands, which have triggered a process that could lead to the loss of certification for the union.
