Former Alberta Professor Arrested at Victoria University, Accused of Trespassing

Former Mount Royal professor and free speech advocate Frances Widdowson was arrested at the University of Victoria campus on Dec. 2, while trying to engage students in discussions about residential schools.

Widdowson, a former tenured professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, was removed from her job in 2021. The removal came after Widdowson spoke out against “wokeism” and identity politics on her website and on social media, often clashing online with colleagues.

A statement issued by the university said certain individuals arrived on campus on Dec. 2 with the “intention of speaking publicly” without prior arrangement with the school. The university told the Epoch Times in the emailed statement the individuals “were informed that their event was not sanctioned to proceed” and confirmed they were escorted off school grounds by law enforcement.

Widdowson’s Account

Widdowson told The Epoch Times she had planned to walk around the university campus wearing a billboard that read “What remains?” in reference to claims that ground-penetrating radar had detected the remains of more than 200 children buried in a mass grave at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School.

She said she was with several others, including B.C. MLA Dallas Brodie.

“We were walking up and I had my billboards on, and we were met by police who told us that under the Trespass Act we have to leave,” she said.

Widdowson said she sought clarification on why she needed to leave and was told the university did not want her on campus.

“I said ‘I’m not going to leave.’ And then they said, ‘OK, well, you’re going to be arrested then.’ And they escorted me to the police car.”

She said she was taken to the police station and was later released and issued a $115 fine for trespassing.

She said that during her time on campus, certain members of her group were physically attacked by other individuals present, but the police did not address the matter.

“The police never did anything about the violent people, the people acting in an unlawful way, whereas with me, all I am doing is trying to ask questions about the remains of Kamloops, the alleged remains which the University of Victoria has been perpetuating,” she said.

Widdowson said her arrest should serve as a “wake up call for the public.”

“Universities are incredibly important institutions, and if we cannot speak freely and try to understand ideas at universities, we’re not going to be able to do it in any other aspect of society, and that is going to be an authoritarian system which is going to be taking over very, very soon,” she said.

Widdowson said the facts needs to be discussed about what happened at Kamloops in open public dialogue.

“If we can’t have truth about that, then the ability to discuss things and try to understand things in Canada is over,” she said.

Acting university president Robina Thomas issued a statement after Widdowson’s arrest, saying university community members must support and affirm one another to build an “inclusive, respectful culture.”

“Recent events on our campus and attempts at denying the history of residential schools are part of a growing narrative that attempts to distort the values and the core mission of higher education institutions—commitment to truth, critical inquiry, and knowledge dissemination,” Thomas said. “This hurtful and divisive rhetoric should not be confused for academic inquiry and debate.”

The university also said that the event was not pre-approved and that it reviews all booking requests to “help ensure that events hosted on our campus can take place safely and without causing undue risk to our community or property,” adding it values the “free and lawful expression of ideas.”

“All university property is governed by our space policy,” the statement said. “As per that policy, members of the public must request to use space on our campus, no matter the size/scale of the event.”

BC MLA Dallas Brodie questioned the police action in a social media post that accompanied a video of an altercation at the university.

“Canadian Police refused to enforce the law against a masked leftwing protestor after he committed an assault in broad daylight, but they arrested Frances Widdowson for peaceful speech,” the representative for Vancouver-Quilchena wrote on Dec. 2.

Mount Royal Decision

Mount Royal University’s 2021 decision to remove Widdowson from her position alleged she had been involved in fostering a “harassing and toxic workplace environment” and that she had violated the school’s code of conduct and personal harassment policy.

In a 2020 media publication, Widdowson said the Black Lives Matter movement had “destroyed” the culture at the university. She was also criticized by students and colleagues for her comments about residential schools, including saying it does not constitute genocide. A petition was started to have her fired following her statements.

She filed a grievance following her termination and an arbitrator concluded in 2024 that although Widdowson’s actions were “just cause” for discipline, her termination was “disproportionate.” However, the arbitrator said it would not be appropriate to reinstate her to her job at the university given the level of conflict between her and others at the school. She was instead awarded a monetary settlement.

Lawsuit

Widdowson, along with University of Lethbridge professor Paul Viminitz, and U of L student Jonah Pickle, filed a lawsuit against the university with the support of the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) in 2023 for cancelling a speaking event featuring Widdowson on Jan. 30, 2023. They say it infringed on their rights to freedom of expression and assembly under the Charter.

Her lawyer in the case, Glenn Blackett, said the case was still ongoing.

The university said in a written argument filed in 2024 that it cancelled the event because it is obligated under the provincial Occupational Health and Safety Act to ensure there is no harassment at the workplace, and to provide a space that is not a risk to psychological and social wellbeing.

JCCF lawyers have argued that the act’s provisions require employers to censor lawful expression or face fines and imprisonment.

Blackett added that the recent incident at the university is cause for public concern because the university receives taxpayer money.

“Their job is to provide a university service, and a university is one characterized by free speech. So you know, I really question whether or not the public’s getting their value for their money,” he said.