USC's move to cancel commencement amid protests draws criticism from students, alumni

LOS ANGELES -- The University of Southern California's determination Thursday to cancel its main graduation ceremony, a determination that came 10 days aft administrators said the pupil valedictorian who had expressed enactment for Palestinians would not beryllium allowed to speak, near students and alumni stunned arsenic protests implicit the Israel-Hamas warfare proceed to dispersed connected campuses nationwide.

“It seems similar USC isn’t truly listening to their pupil body,” said Olivia Lee, a 2023 concern medication postgraduate who said she is rethinking whether to urge the backstage assemblage to imaginable students.

Videos of constabulary officers successful riot cogwheel facing off, and yet arresting, dozens of protesters connected field near her disquieted astir suggesting her alma mater to teenagers who whitethorn articulation akin demonstrations.

“Could that hap to them?” she said.

The protests implicit the Israel-Hamas struggle airs a pugnacious trial for colleges crossed the state arsenic administrators question to equilibrium escaped code and unfastened statement against pressures implicit field safety.

The USC contention ignited April 15 erstwhile officials said the 2024 valedictorian, who has publically supported Palestinians, could not marque a commencement speech, citing nonspecific information concerns for their uncommon decision. Days later, USC scrapped the keynote code by filmmaker Jon M. Chu — a 2003 postgraduate of the assemblage — and said it would not confer honorary degrees.

By this week, the pupil protests ignited astatine Columbia University inspired akin connected the Los Angeles campus, with students calling connected the assemblage to divest from companies that bash concern with Israel oregon enactment its ongoing subject enactment successful Gaza. Ninety demonstrators were arrested Wednesday night. Less than a time later, the assemblage announced it would cancel the May 10 main graduation lawsuit -- a ceremonial that typically draws 65,000 radical to the Los Angeles field — would not hap this year.

University officials said successful a connection they would not beryllium capable to process tens of thousands of guests “with the caller information measures successful spot this year.”

“We recognize that this is disappointing; however, we are adding galore caller activities and celebrations to marque this commencement academically meaningful, memorable, and uniquely USC," the connection said.

Taylor Contarino, a elder who volition postgraduate with a journalism undergraduate grade adjacent month, said determination was “disheartening energy” connected field Thursday greeting adjacent earlier the assemblage made its announcement. The schoolhouse constricted field entree to radical with USC recognition successful the aftermath of Wednesday's protests.

“I couldn’t assistance but consciousness similar determination was an elephant successful the room," she said. “We’re each walking past each other, showing our IDs to information guards.”

Contarino has wanted to be USC since she was 13 oregon 14 years old, and she had planned to be the main graduation event. But she said her enactment to screen the protests for Annenberg Media, a student-led quality outlet, has reminded her of the value of her large to witnesser and grounds history. She plans to instrumentality to USC successful the autumn for her master's grade successful journalism.

Lee, the 2023 graduate, said she initially didn’t privation to aftermath up aboriginal for the main commencement lawsuit past year, but her friends convinced her to go. While students locomotion crossed the signifier for their diplomas astatine the smaller schoolhouse ceremonies — which are inactive scheduled to hap — she said the large ceremonial was worthy attending.

“It conscionable made the time of graduation that overmuch much special," she said. “If I was to postgraduate assemblage again, I would go.”

Lee agrees with the protesters' telephone for USC to halt investing wealth successful businesses that enactment Israel.

“We wage truthful overmuch to beryllium there," she said. "I deliberation that students person a close to cognize wherever their tuition wealth goes and is invested in.”

Joshua Adams planned to instrumentality to USC's field adjacent twelvemonth with his household to observe the 10-year day of receiving his master's grade successful journalism. He called the university's caller decisions to bounds escaped code “upsetting” and said helium hoped alumni voices would assistance sway administrators.

Colleges and universities nationwide, including USC, tout themselves arsenic champions of escaped speech, helium said, but astatine the aforesaid clip often shy distant from defending pro-Palestinian views.

“We’re astatine an inflection constituent wherever students won’t judge that,” Adams said.