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Keffiyeh-waving protesters banned from Queen’s Park
Four protesters who unfurled keffiyehs inside Ontario’s legislature and were subsequently kicked out have been banned from Queen’s Park.
Mariam Bebawy says she and three friends from York Centre 4 Palestine were given trespass notices last week from the Legislative Assembly of Ontario’s sergeant-at-arms after they held out their keffiyehs and began chanting “free free Palestine” during question period.
The notice says she is prohibited from entering the premises of the main legislative building and a government building nearby.
READ MORE: Hamilton MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature over keffiyeh
A keffiyeh is a checkered scarf typically worn in Arab cultures that has come to symbolize solidarity with Palestinians.
Speaker Ted Arnott banned keffiyehs at the legislature earlier this year, saying they are being worn to make a political statement, but all four party leaders including Premier Doug Ford have asked for the ban to be overturned.
Neither Arnott’s office nor sergeant-at-arms Tim McGough responded to several requests for comment.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 1, 2024.
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