Valedictorian told to stay home after making pro-Palestinian remarks in grad speech

The valedictory speaker at a w canadian capital heights school day says she's been told not to come to school Monday after she made pro-Palestinian remarks during a speech at her commencement ceremony.

Elizabeth Yao largely focused on highlights from the past four years at Bell High School during her speech on Thursday, including a memorable waffle fundraiser and the days spent dozing off while reading Shakespeare.

Her comments on the war in Gaza came at the end, after a land acknowledgement.

"As a commitment to truth and reconciliation, I must acknowledge colonial and genocidal atrocities today, including the massacre of more than 17,000 Palestinian children in Gaza," Yao said, breaking off as the crowd cheered.

The next day, Yao said she received a call from her principal, who said her statements had "caused harm" and told her she shouldn't come to school on Monday. 

That decision is being criticized by some as going against Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) policy, and Yao said she stands by her speech.

"I believe that it was the right thing to do because it's an issue that deeply affects my community," she said.

Since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, more than 50,000 children have been reportedly killed or injured in Gaza, according to UNICEF.

But the escalating war in Gaza was an ever-present concern for her class through their high school years, Yao said, noting that her school has a large Arab and Muslim population.

"I have seen it affect the students around me, as they have gone on walkouts and protests in the past in order to make the Canadian government aware of what is going on," she said.

"[They] have been asking how on earth or why on earth are we suspending valedictorians and potentially putting their future in jeopardy with three weeks left to go in school," Evans said. 

Hanna Abdalla, Yao's friend and fellow graduate, said she didn't hear from anyone who was upset with Yao's speech.

"I don't think it was fair to [be] putting our valedictorian on blast," said Abdalla. "What about the harm, the daily harm, that Palestinian students back in Palestine go through every day?"

After her situation drew so much attention, Yao was put in touch with the National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), a non-profit advocacy and lobby group.

"To imply that what [Yao] said was harmful is itself a form of anti-Palestinian erasure and anti-Palestinian racism, which the school board has a specific policy against," she said. 

Evans agreed that Yao did not break any rules. She cited the OCDSB's own guidelines, which say "slogans or symbols that signal solidarity, such as 'Free Palestine' etc. Are permitted so long as they don't violate the code of conduct."

The school board should revoke the suspension, ensure no mark is made on Yao's Ontario student record, and issue an apology to the broader Palestinian community, Evans said. 

In the meantime, Yao still plans to go back to school on Monday. 

"I'm a little angry, maybe, at the unfortunate situation, especially since I had connected the situation to the values of the school board and what I had learned throughout my four years of being at the school," she said.

"I was applying that to being an advocate and making sure that those who are oppressed have a voice in our society."

Gabrielle is an Ottawa-based journalist with eclectic interests. She's spoken to video game developers, city councillors, neuroscientists and small business owners alike. Reach out to her for any reason at gabrielle.huston@cbc.ca.

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