Poll looks at where Canadians find protests ‘acceptable’

According to a new poll from Angus Reid, the majority of Canadians say protesting on university campuses is acceptable.

The poll comes after administrators at McGill University declared a pro-Palestinian encampment on its grounds illegal this week.

READ MORE: McGill says police assistance requested to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment

It asked Canadians where it was acceptable to conduct protests.

Ninety-two per cent said public buildings like city hall are acceptable, and 87 per cent say embassies are acceptable.

Canadians were more hesitant when it came to places like hospitals, with 43 per cent saying it was acceptable, or abortion clinics (40 per cent).

When it comes to protesting at schools and places of worship, Canadians are mixed. Forty-five per cent of those surveyed said it is never acceptable to protest at a school, however 49 per cent disagree.

Meanwhile for places of worship, 54 per cent say it’s OK for protests. Thirty-nine per cent of Canadians disagree.

The survey also found the majority of those who said it was acceptable to protest at hospitals, abortion clinics, schools, universities, and places of worship also believe those protests should require a buffer or exclusion zone between protesters and the institution.

Older Canadians are more likely to believe more locations should be off limits to protesters.

Three-quarters of Canadians who have protested in the past six months say it is OK to protest in front of a hospital while one-third of those who have never protested in their lives say the same.