Sir George Williams affair
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| Sir George Williams Computer Occupation | |
|---|---|
 The Henry F. Hall building in 1970. | |
| Location | Montreal |
| Date | January 29, 1969 (EST) |
| Target | The Henry F. Hall building |
The Sir George Williams Computer Occupation was a 1969 event at Sir George Williams University in Montreal, Canada, now a part of Concordia University. It was the largest student Occupation in Canadian history.
Overview
Beginning on January 29, over 400 students occupied the university's computer lab. The occupation was sparked by the university's mishandling of racism allegations against professor Perry Anderson at the school. Fed up with what they considered to be intransigence on the part of the administration, black and white students left a meeting and occupied the university computer lab on the ninth floor of the Henry F. Hall Building.
Most of the occupation was quite peaceful: the police were not involved, and negotiations continued. Some claim that the computer lab was not damaged, except for several million computer punched cards that were sent fluttering to the street below; but a Canadian Broadcast Corporation documentary shows smashed computer tape drives and extensive fire damage. The damage was listed in millions of dollars. It is unknown who caused the fire. The police accused the occupiers, the occupiers like rodney john who were mostly students, accused the police of setting the fire as an easy way to get all the students out of the room without physically entering it. Other students also claim that they saw police confiscating locking doors and exits that were normally open and police confiscated fire axes from students the day before the fire was set. [Turning points in history episode st george williams university]
The occupation continued until February 11 when negotiations broke down and riot police were called in. A fire broke out in the computer lab, forcing the occupiers out of the building. 97 of them were arrested. The computer lab was destroyed, resulting in over $2 million in damage. Windows were broken and computer tapes and punched cards tossed onto the street below. The charges against most of the rioters were eventually dismissed.
The riot was covered extensively by the Canadian media: all of the television networks filmed the event live from outside the university. The occupation became a key event illustrating the widespread disaffection and rebelliousness among the nation's youth during the 1960s. The occupation led to greater openness at Sir George Williams, and other universities across Canada. The occupation also brought to the forefront anti-black racism in higher education in Montreal and Canada where white students could have been seen on cbc tv holding signs saying "All Niggers must die". "Rodney John Ph.d Psychology and former occupier describes how the crowd outside the centre was filled with white students many of whom he had went to class with. He then went on to describe the largely white mob as similar to a southern white lynch mob and that white students shouted "let the niggers burn" in reference to the fact that the firemen were trying to put out a fire in the computer room" Turning Points of History tv shows St George Williams University.
Among the occupiers arrested was Roosevelt Douglas, who later became Prime Minister of Dominica, and Anne Cools, now a Canadian Senator. Also deeply involved was student Cheddi "Joey" Jagan, Jr., son of Guyana's prime minister.
