UNIVERSITY DESTROYS GARDEN FOR THE SECOND TIME
by
Food Not Lawns
Coast Salish Territories - Victoria, BC. On Friday, April 9th students, faculty and staff arrived at the University of Victoria and found the Community Garden destroyed, with a large fence surrounding the area, and a sign that reads “Area Under Restoration, Do Not Enter.”
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The Community Garden has been a contentious issue at UVic, ever since it was first constructed on March 24th without permission from UVic administration. That night, UVic bulldozed the garden, but on March 31st, over 500 students, faculty, and community members converged on the space and reconstructed the garden.
A press release issued by UVic today announces that the space was “restored for community use,” but explains that the area “will be fenced off until it is ready for use again by students and other university community members.” It reminds readers that “an investigation into the incident is ongoing.”
“The notion that only lawns can facilitate ‘community use’ is a joke,” said Renee McBeth, a UVic student. “The Community Garden was becoming a space for dialogue, workshops, and community-building activities,” said McBeth.
"We held two workshops there yesterday. A number of UVic professors have already volunteered to hold public discussions there. I’m shocked and saddened to see the heavy-handed response the university administration has taken against this creative student initiative.”
Other students are frustrated about the way UVic has responded. “First students planted a garden, and they bulldozed it,” said Nick Montgomery, another UVic student. “Then more students, community members, and faculty replanted the garden, and support grew. This time, they left it alone for a week, sent out threatening letters to students, and then destroyed it again. UVic seems to have plenty of time for these tactics, but no time to hold the public meeting they’ve been promising.”
“It’s really frustrating,” said former UVic student Larkin Schmiedl. “UVic, like many institutions, pays lip service to food security, but when it comes to the reality of it, we’re faced with an alienating bureaucracy that actually prevents people from being involved in the circumstances of their daily lives,” said Schmiedl. “Local food is a pressing issue that is widely recognized as such. Why does the administration have such a need to control what is happening with this garden?”
Students have promised further initiatives to come.
