Concordia spends close to $300,000 to replace Hall building windows
The glass was vandalized during a demonstration in September
Concordia University has spent a total of $289,238.01 to conceal and repair broken windows in the lobby of the Henry F. Hall Building.
Protesters shattered the windows during a demonstration on Sept. 29. The demonstrators had spray-painted pro-Palestine messages on the windows and carried a banner featuring the symbol of anarchy.
According to information acquired by The Link, Concordia spent $277,262.21 to supply and install new windows and $9,642 on wooden boards to temporarily hide the vandalism. The university also spent $2,333.80 at the Concordia Print Store on black panels to further conceal the damage featuring temporary signage with the Concordia 50th anniversary logo.
This comes as the university is facing what it refers to as “significant financial difficulties” following the Quebec government’s tuition hikes for English-language universities.
Concordia has implemented cuts of 7.8 per cent to meet its financial objectives. Some of the cuts have included reducing the shuttle bus service schedule, implementing and maintaining a hiring freeze, and cutting classes with enrolment deemed too low.
The September demonstration came four days after a student walkout in support of Palestine where police officers aggressively handled students and three protesters were arrested.
According to Concordia deputy spokesperson Julie Fortier, the university will continue to call on the SPVM when people or events become violent.
“We need the entire community’s collaboration to help us maintain a peaceful study and work environment at Concordia,” Fortier said. “That’s why we called on all community members and groups to denounce violence, including vandalism of our buildings.”
The increase in political demonstrations at the university comes following over a year of genocide in Palestine. At the end of November, over 11,000 students at Concordia and 85,000 students across Montreal went on strike in support of an international university strike movement for Palestine.
Student demands for the university include: Disclosing and divesting from companies investing in Israel, ending employment partnerships with companies complicit in genocide like Lockheed Martin and Bombardier, and publically condemning the ongoing genocide.
The Concordia Student Union and nine other student associations have also formerly called for the university and Campus Safety and Prevention Services to end their relationship with the SPVM.
As of the day of publication, the new Hall building windows no longer display the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
This article originally appeared in Volume 45, Issue 7, published January 14, 2025.
