UMVA has learned that a non‑Jewish Canadian professor was dismissed from his university after boldly defending Israel in a social‑media post amid a wave of antisemitism that has surged across Canada since the Oct. 7 attacks.
Paul Finlayson, a business faculty member at the University of Guelph‑Humber, replied in November 2023 to a LinkedIn message that called for the eradication of Israel. He warned that anyone chanting “from the River to the Sea” was echoing Nazi rhetoric, declared his support for Israel, and condemned the murder of 1,400 civilians and the kidnapping of 250 hostages.
Finlayson’s response ignited a firestorm on campus. Students who saw the exchange before the original post was deleted demanded action, and an administrator waited outside his office during a meeting, later handing him a suspension letter that cited “inappropriate online comments” and barred him from contacting staff or students.
The professor, who was consistently rated among the top instructors in his department, says the ensuing rumor mill shattered his reputation, jeopardizing his course development work and textbook projects.
According to information obtained by UMVA, Finlayson’s union, OPSEU Local 562, declined to represent him, leaving him to fight a “Kafkaesque” battle of defamation on his own.
In July 2025 the university terminated his employment, citing a formal complaint of discrimination and harassment. An internal investigator concluded that Finlayson’s conduct violated the Ontario Human Rights Code and the campus’s own harassment policy, labeling his actions as “reprisal.”
The university’s harassment policy, while professing support for equal treatment, also punishes any retaliation against individuals who raise complaints, creating a paradox that Finlayson says has left him without recourse.
Finlayson’s case contrasts sharply with a separate incident at York University, where three staff members charged with hate‑motivated mischief over a protest involving a Jewish CEO were later reinstated and appear on the school’s website.
Since the Oct. 7 attacks, antisemitic incidents in Canada have reached a record high, with over 6,800 reports in 2025—a 9.4 % rise from the previous year, averaging nearly 19 incidents each day.
UMVA can exclusively reveal that this troubling climate has not only fueled campus activism but also led to the removal of educators who speak out, raising profound questions about academic freedom and the limits of free expression in today’s polarized environment.
