Myer Horowitz: A great educator

Myer Horowitz was president of the University of Alberta in 1988.

Source: https://jewishcemeteryofvictoriabc.ca

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“Free!”
“Mandela!”
“Down!”
“Apartheid!”

That was the chant we were yelling out as we marched through the University of Alberta campus in the early months of 1988.

Barely 18 years old, it was my first protest.

It was also the day I met Myer Horowitz, president of the University of Alberta.

Today, I was cleaning off my desk when I came upon an article I tore out of the Alberta Teachers Association magazine awhile ago on Myer Horowitz.

It took me back to that day all those years ago.

Roomies
In September of 1987, Chris Vining, my best friend growing up. We headed off to the University of Alberta to study Education and live together in residence.

There were two other guys from our high school grad class who we hung out with to varying degrees, who also made the trek north and lived in res.

Our friend Randy had a single room on Sixth Mac, while Craig had a double room, like we did, on Eighth Mac, so he had a roommate.

Craig's roommate was Patrick Church. He was from Drumheller, and he was a really interesting person. He was in Arts and, where a lot of first year students took history, he took Classics. I wasn’t sure what that was until I took a Classics class of my own four years later. Where a lot of students took French as their second language requirement, he took Russian.

And he really got into causes.

I would run into him periodically and ask him how things were going.

One day, pretty early in second semester, I saw him on campus and he told me about something that changed everything.

Down Apartheid
One day, Vining and I were coming back from class and we were cutting through SUB – the Students Union Building. Back then there was a courtyard as you entered the building from the south. Patrick was set up there with some others, and they were asking people to sign a petition.

We stopped and he filled us in. He said a high-ranking official from South Africa was scheduled to speak on campus, and they wanted to stop it in protest over the country’s policy of Apartheid. I am pretty sure the speaker was a de Klerk. I am not 100 percent sure it was the man who would eventually be president and bring an end to the racist, segregationist policy.

Patrick asked us if we were interested in signing the petition.

Long before that day, I had read about Apartheid and the idea sickened me. It bothered me the world stood by as a country proclaimed to be free and democratic yet had this racist system in place. We still traded with them, although sanctions were beginning to sink in their teeth.

Vining and I had talked about Apartheid and so many other issues.

This was a chance for us to make a statement, so we happily signed that petition.

Then Patrick said in a few minutes they were going to march through campus, then deliver the petition to the leadership of the university.

I looked around, and saw students with signs and others still painting them.

It was kind of exhilarating.

Hijacked
While we were standing around this guy we knew came walking back. We had a bunch of classes with him, and just started getting to know him. He was on his way back to res from HUB Mall when he saw us.

This time we told him what was happening and invited him to sign the petition. He did.

That was great for another reason. I had actually seen him working one of the welcome tables the day we moved into res, sat with him in History 200 and some other classes, but only ever knew that Chris was his first name. Now I had the chance to read what his last name was.

Only I couldn’t read his writing. Was it “Jensen” or “Johnson”? I wasn’t sure. So I had to ask him.

“Jesswein, my name is Chris Jesswein.”

He would become one of my closest friends, I would live with him, and he would be there in the chapel when we buried my Dad.

Chris would later say he was simply doing some shopping when we hijacked him for that protest.

Marching
The majority of people who had gathered were Black, and were from a campus student organization that I think was an anti-Apartheid group. They were led by one man who, I believe, was from South Africa. He had a megaphone and led us on this march through campus.

He would yell, “Free!” and we would respond “Mandela!”

Then he would yell, “Down!” and we responded with “Aparheid!”

We turned a lot of heads, and got a few thumbs up.

Since we came late, I was not sure what would happen next. We were lead back in front of the Students Union Building and stopped.

The group then split in two. I went in one direction with a bunch of people including the man with the megaphone. Vining was with the other group, so I had no idea what they were doing.

I had no idea what we were doing either.

So I just followed along.

Pretty soon we were in the annals of power at the University of Alberta.

We were ushered in to see the president of the university.

That’s when I met Myer Horowitz.

Yes, Mr. President
He was a small man, but had kind eyes. He listened as the leader of our group presented the petition and expressed our utter opposition to Apartheid.

Horowitz took in everything we said, listening intently and receptively.

I had a healthy distrust of authority at that point, and expected a bit of a fight.

That was not at all forthcoming.

Instead, the president said he was not unaccustomed to protest. He had experience with it when he was at McGill. Horowitz was gracious in hearing the group’s message, thanked us for bringing the petition, and shook all our hands.

He was quite impressive, because he listened.

I will never forget that.

Afterwards
When we left the administration building, I found Vining. His group had gone up to see Tim Boston, president of the students’ union to present the petition.

At that point, Jesswein left. He said he had to get back to res.

He had to put away the stuff he bought in HUB.

And he had a date.

The aftermath
The speaker from South Africa never did come to campus. He cancelled his speaking engagement.

Martin Parry, another student, said something that got me to thinking. He was opposed to our protest pointing out that as an institution of higher learning, shouldn’t we listen to all points of view. If we were preventing someone from speaking, were we any better than the South African government who was stifling the free speech of the Black majority?

That really sat with me.

About a week after that, I was walking out of the cafeteria after lunch, and I heard, “Free!”

I looked around. There was Chris Jesswein smiling.

It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Parting thoughts
Looking back, I am pretty sure Myer Horowitz had the same view as Martin Parry.

What I have always respected was the fact he did not share his point of view with us, nor did he debate or lecture us.

He just listened, and let things unfold so we could see them for ourselves.

This article I tore out of the Alberta Teachers Association magazine said he was a great educator.

That day in 1988 proves it to me.