New data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds pro-Palestinian encampments entrenched on university grounds for more than a month have worn our their welcome in the eyes of many Canadians.Two-in-five (42%) Canadians say it is acceptable for students to set up protest camps overnight; half (50%) disagree. And that’s where acceptance peaks. Two-thirds believe it is unacceptable for encampments to last weeks (64%) or several months (66%). Canadians are not unified in their views on this subject; there is a stark generational contrast. A majority (53%) of 18- to 24-year-old Canadians believe an encampment lasting several months is fine. The proportion who share that belief shrinks considerably with age, down to one-in-10 (9%) of those older than 64 who would agree. This study was conducted simultaneously by ARI in the United States and Canada, offering a cross-border view of encampments which began first on American campuses before Canadian students followed suit. Canadians and Americans share similar views as these protest camps persist: near identical minorities of people on both side of the border believe camps lasting overnight (41% U.S., 42% Canada), several days (38% U.S., 39% Canada), several weeks (32% U.S., 29% Canada) and several months (29% U.S., 25% Canada) are acceptable.Canadian students but established pro-Palestinian camps on campuses across the country. McGill University students set up the first Canadian encampment on April 29 following the lead of American post-secondary students who first began camping at Columbia University almost two weeks earlier. While university administrations at McGill have called for police action to break-up the encampment, it has lasted.At the University of Calgary and University of Alberta, camps were dismantled almost immediately by riot police. In some instances, protests were only temporary by design. There is also similar pattern seen among American age cohorts as those in Canada, with half (49%) of American 18- and 34-year-olds and a similar number (47%) of Canadians that age who believe camps lasting several months are fine, outnumbering those older than 54 on both sides of the border (14% U.S., 10% Canada) who agree by more than three-to-one.When it comes to the demands of the protesters — that universities disclose, divest, and sever ties with Israeli institutions — opposition (46%) is higher than support in Canada (31%). Similar figures (41% oppose, 31% support) are seen among Americans.Likely NDP voters support campus encampments lasting from overnight (75%) to several months (56%) at a majority level, while most of those who would vote CPC say they find any length of encampment unacceptable. Likely Liberal voters are split on encampments lasting several weeks (47% acceptable, 47% unacceptable), but most view anything longer than that unacceptable..The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from May 24-28, 2024 among a representative randomized sample of 1,603 Canadian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum, and polled 2,024 American adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum USA over the same period..President Joe Biden has dealt with criticism – and a protest vote during the Democratic presidential nomination process this year – over his administration’s handling of Israel’s war in Gaza. With that in the background, more than two-in-five (43%) of those who would vote Biden for president day believe protest camps lasting several months is acceptable. One-in-eight (13%) likely Donald Trump voters say the same.
New data from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute finds pro-Palestinian encampments entrenched on university grounds for more than a month have worn our their welcome in the eyes of many Canadians.Two-in-five (42%) Canadians say it is acceptable for students to set up protest camps overnight; half (50%) disagree. And that’s where acceptance peaks. Two-thirds believe it is unacceptable for encampments to last weeks (64%) or several months (66%). Canadians are not unified in their views on this subject; there is a stark generational contrast. A majority (53%) of 18- to 24-year-old Canadians believe an encampment lasting several months is fine. The proportion who share that belief shrinks considerably with age, down to one-in-10 (9%) of those older than 64 who would agree. This study was conducted simultaneously by ARI in the United States and Canada, offering a cross-border view of encampments which began first on American campuses before Canadian students followed suit. Canadians and Americans share similar views as these protest camps persist: near identical minorities of people on both side of the border believe camps lasting overnight (41% U.S., 42% Canada), several days (38% U.S., 39% Canada), several weeks (32% U.S., 29% Canada) and several months (29% U.S., 25% Canada) are acceptable.Canadian students but established pro-Palestinian camps on campuses across the country. McGill University students set up the first Canadian encampment on April 29 following the lead of American post-secondary students who first began camping at Columbia University almost two weeks earlier. While university administrations at McGill have called for police action to break-up the encampment, it has lasted.At the University of Calgary and University of Alberta, camps were dismantled almost immediately by riot police. In some instances, protests were only temporary by design. There is also similar pattern seen among American age cohorts as those in Canada, with half (49%) of American 18- and 34-year-olds and a similar number (47%) of Canadians that age who believe camps lasting several months are fine, outnumbering those older than 54 on both sides of the border (14% U.S., 10% Canada) who agree by more than three-to-one.When it comes to the demands of the protesters — that universities disclose, divest, and sever ties with Israeli institutions — opposition (46%) is higher than support in Canada (31%). Similar figures (41% oppose, 31% support) are seen among Americans.Likely NDP voters support campus encampments lasting from overnight (75%) to several months (56%) at a majority level, while most of those who would vote CPC say they find any length of encampment unacceptable. Likely Liberal voters are split on encampments lasting several weeks (47% acceptable, 47% unacceptable), but most view anything longer than that unacceptable..The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from May 24-28, 2024 among a representative randomized sample of 1,603 Canadian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum, and polled 2,024 American adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum USA over the same period..President Joe Biden has dealt with criticism – and a protest vote during the Democratic presidential nomination process this year – over his administration’s handling of Israel’s war in Gaza. With that in the background, more than two-in-five (43%) of those who would vote Biden for president day believe protest camps lasting several months is acceptable. One-in-eight (13%) likely Donald Trump voters say the same.
