The Toroto District School Board described the event this week as an educational experience to hear from Indigenous voices. However, videos appear to show students being led through a march and participating in a pro-Palestinian rally.Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press
The Toronto District School Board will investigate the circumstances surrounding a field trip attended by students from several schools earlier this week after videos surfaced that appeared to show students marching alongside a rally by pro-Palestinian protesters.
The board has been under pressure from community members and the provincial government to review the excursion that took place on Wednesday to downtown Toronto for the Grassy Narrows River Run, an event in support of the Grassy Narrows First Nation and their efforts to address mercury contamination affecting their community.
The TDSB described the event as an educational experience to hear from Indigenous voices. However, videos circulating on social media appear to show students being led through a march and participating in a pro-Palestinian rally.
In a statement on its website on Friday, the board said that if policies and professional standards were not followed, it would take “appropriate action, which may include discipline and/or changes to our field trip process to ensure accountability.”
It added: “We apologize for the harm that some students may have experienced as a result. We take these concerns very seriously and will prioritize our investigation into the matter.”
This was the second statement issued by the board on this excursion.
On Thursday, the board said it would review its field trip procedures. However, it did not specify examining this excursion.
That prompted Education Minister Jill Dunlop to weigh in.
“I am deeply disappointed by yesterday’s events. Compromising the security and safety of students is unacceptable,” Ms. Dunlop wrote in a social-media post on Thursday. “I expect TDSB to conduct a thorough review of the situation and ensure accountability with parents and students to prevent future incidents.”
The TDSB has not said how many students participated in the field trip and which schools were involved. The decision to go on field trips is generally under the direction of individual schools and teachers. It is unclear how many schools left during the rally, especially as issues outside of the focus of the excursion were raised.
The board said that students should not participate in organized protests as part of a field trip and that would be clarified with its schools.
“We will continue to critically evaluate requests for field trips in accordance with our policies and procedures. The safety and the well-being of our students will continue to be our top priority,” the board said on Friday.