On December 1st, 2022, I filed a complaint against Memorial University to the Newfoundland and Labrador Human Rights Commission. My complaint has now been accepted by the Commission and received by MUN. As of now the below are allegations and Memorial will have a chance to respond. See my complaint below:
On December 2, 2021, I protested during a speech from Memorial University President Vianne Timmons. The following day, interim measures banning me from campus were imposed on me and I was put through an arduous Student Code of Conduct process. As a result, my ability to access the university was hindered. I have been diagnosed with autism since before I started attending MUN in 2015. I believe the university has known about this disability since at least 2017 when another student disclosed it to the public and I filed a complaint against said student. Some of my mannerisms and behaviors may appear different to people due to my autism. In his complaint against me, Chief Risk Officer Greg McDougall used language that I see as denigrating and stigmatizing towards persons with autism. In deciding to what extent my protest would be acceptable, I referred to the Student Code of Conduct and previous protests that had taken place in recent times at MUN. In accordance to this, I judged my December 2, 2021 protest to be well within the boundaries of acceptable behavior. Therefore, I am led to believe that the differential treatment I received is due to my autism.
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