Attempting to engage in an open dialogue with the UVIC campus community
On December 2, 2025, Canadian academic Dr. Frances Widdowson attended the University of Victoria (UVic) with OneBC Leader Dallas Brodie to “initiate a good-faith inquiry” into contested public-policy narratives surrounding unmarked graves in Kamloops.
The University of Victoria had issued a directive the day before warning that Dr. Widdowson and Ms. Brodie were “not permitted to attend UVic property for the purpose of speaking publicly,” and publicly denounced their planned engagement both before and after it occurred.
Campus protest, arrest, and charges
Upon arriving at Petch Fountain on the campus of UVic, Dr. Widdowson encountered approximately 100 protesters described as aggressive, appearing to include individuals self-identifying as Communists, Hamas supporters, and Antifa-aligned activists.
She was then confronted by UVic security officials and Saanich police officers, served a trespass notice, and—after declining to leave—was arrested, detained for roughly two hours, and charged under British Columbia’s Trespass Act, an offence that carries potential penalties of up to $2,000 in fines or six months’ imprisonment.
Dr. Widdowson stated that “my arrest at the University of Victoria is an indication of an institution that is completely unmoored from its academic purpose.”
She added, “it has been perpetuating the falsehood of 215 remains of children being confirmed at Kamloops since 2021, and is intent on censoring any correction of this claim. This should be of concern for everyone who believes that universities should be places of open inquiry and critical thinking, not propaganda and indoctrination.”
Constitutional lawyer Glenn Blackett noted that “the University of Victoria receives hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars annually while it facilitates the arrest of Canadians attempting to engage in free inquiry on campus.”
Legal challenge launched
Lawyers funded by the Justice Centre will challenge the prosecution and defend Dr. Widdowson’s Charter-protected freedoms of expression and peaceful assembly.
Dr. Widdowson is no stranger to debate over academic freedom. She served as a tenured professor at Mount Royal University until her 2021 dismissal following controversy over her criticism of identity politics and Indigenous policy—termination that an arbitrator later found wrongful.
Her scholarship includes Disrobing the Aboriginal Industry, shortlisted for the Donner Prize in 2008, and she is the 2025 recipient of the Justice Centre’s George Jonas Freedom Award for her commitment to protecting freedom of expression and open inquiry.
Further updates will be provided as the case progresses.
