Calgary Student Movement protests President’s Stampede BBQ
By Andreea Timis, July 18 2024—
On July 3, the University of Calgary hosted its annual President’s Stampede BBQ on the Taylor Family Digital Library (TFDL) quad from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Participants were encouraged to dress in Western attire as they engaged in line dancing, live music and a free lunch. Various booths were set up around the quad and participants had the chance to take a photo with Rodeo Rex and Calgary Stampede mascot Harry the Horse.
Lunch was provided to the first 1,575 people to line up and vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free and halal options were also offered. Additionally, participants were encouraged to contribute to the Students’ Union (SU) Campus Food Bank via monetary donation or by bringing a non-perishable food item to a booth by the UCalgary sign on the MacEwan Hall stairs.
The event began with an opening prayer led by Elder Reg Crowshoe – former chief and current cultural and spiritual leader of the Piikuni First Nation in Southern Alberta. Crowshoe was recently appointed a member of the University of Calgary Senate and was offered tobacco in exchange for his blessing in the opening prayer.
Line dancing performed by the Chinook Country Line Dancers — a Calgary-based group known for their performances at the Calgary Stampede — succeeded the prayer, and Albertan country singer Travis Dolter performed.
During the event, the Calgary Student Movement (CSM) – known on Instagram as @UofC_divest4pal – held a protest on the MacEwan Hall stairs and in front of the stage. They held up signs addressing the ongoing war in Gaza. They also condemned the alleged actions committed against student protesters by Calgary police on May 9, 2024. They also called for the resignation of President Dr. Ed McCauley. Members of the CSM also held a die-in demonstration – lying on a bloodied cloth to symbolize the violence and oppression faced by Palestinians from the state of Israel.
The U of C administration provided the following statement in regards to the protest.
“As an academic institution, the University of Calgary is committed to free speech and free expression. On July 3, a group of about 20 people held a protest at the university’s annual Stampede barbecue. Our university supports free expression and peaceful protest as long as it remains safe, and this gathering caused no disruption to an event enjoyed by hundreds of students, faculty and staff.”
In a statement to the Gauntlet, CSM explained their reasons for protesting the event and detailed the specific actions and decisions by McCauley that were targeted in their protest.
“On May 9th, 2024, University of Calgary President Ed McCauley brazenly called the Calgary police to silence student protesters at the [TFDL] quad on campus. These students were brutally assaulted by riot shields, tear gas, batons, rubber bullets and explosive pepper balls as they peacefully protested against the university’s complicity in the ongoing genocide of Palestinians,” reads the statement.
The statement continued to criticize the university for what it described as ignorance and disregard for global humanitarian crises. CSM claimed that many students, faculty and staff members were angered by the administration’s decision to host an event on the same grounds where police allegedly attacked students.
“In an egregious display of insensitivity, President McCauley hosted a celebratory Stampede BBQ with food, music and dancing on the very grounds where the May 9th anti-genocide protestors were met with violence.” The CSM statement claims. “[The CSM] directly rejected [President McCauley]’s behaviour and demanded his resignation because someone who openly displays insensitivity towards a genocide and permits the brutalization of the university’s own students is clearly unfit to be President,” the statement continued.
The statement called on the university to cease its complicity in the alleged Palestinian genocide by divesting from Israel, listening to student demands and concerns and respecting their right to protest.