Police arrest Frances Widdowson at University of Lethbridge cafeteria

Former Mount Royal University professor Frances Widdowson was arrested at the University of Lethbridge on Saturday in the latest escalation in a dispute between the academic and post-secondary learning institutions over campus Canadian access, academic freedom and free speech..Video footage obtained by Drea Humphrey at Rebel News and shared by Western Standard showed Lethbridge police officers detaining Widdowson in the university’s cafeteria area, where she had been seated at a table. Officers approached, placed her in handcuffs behind her back and escorted her through the building and outdoors to a waiting police van. She was loaded into the vehicle as bystanders filmed the scene.The University of Lethbridge had issued a ban and trespass notice against Widdowson earlier this week, citing safety and security concerns related to her presence on campus. University officials said her controversial views — particularly her criticism of certain narratives surrounding Canada’s Indian residential schools and claims of “genocide” — posed a risk of disruption..According to a Saturday X post from Humphrey, the University of Lethbridge issued the ban, trespass notice, and a “campus alert” statement upon hearing Widdowson intended to have a Saturday morning coffee meeting with a student at the university’s campus cafeteria.Widdowson, who was terminated from Mount Royal University in Calgary in 2021 over her public statements on indigenous issues, has a history of legal challenges against post-secondary institutions, as well as several recent arrests for alleged trespassing on university campuses.She is currently pursuing a court case against the University of Lethbridge over its 2023 cancellation of a planned lecture on “woke-ism,” arguing the decision violated her Charter rights to free expression.In January, Widdowson was arrested at the University of British Columbia in a similar incident. A month earlier, she was arrested at the University of Victoria and issued a $115 ticket for alleged breach of the Trespass Act.No charges have been announced in the recent University of Lehtbridge incident, and Widdowson’s custody status was not publicly known as of Saturday afternoon.

Police arrest Frances Widdowson at University of Lethbridge cafeteria

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