The University of Southern California has announced that it will not be hosting its main commencement ceremony, citing new safety measures that would increase the processing time for the thousands of guests typically in attendance. This decision comes after more than 90 students were arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department during a protest in solidarity with Palestinians on campus.
The protest was organized by the USC Divest From Death Coalition, demanding that USC end study abroad programs in Israel, provide amnesty to campus members disciplined for pro-Palestinian activism, and disclose and divest its finances from companies profiting from “Israeli apartheid, genocide, and occupation in Palestine.” The protesters were released on Thursday morning, but tensions have persisted on campus, leading to the closure of USC’s main campus through the weekend to those without proper identification or legitimate business purposes.
Despite the cancellation of the main commencement ceremony, USC will still hold individual events for students with new safety measures in place, such as required tickets for entry and specific points of entry for all campus access. The university is also facing criticism for canceling a graduation speech by valedictorian Asna Tabassum, a biomedical engineering student whose social media posts in support of Palestinians were flagged as antisemitic. USC cited unspecified security threats as the reason for canceling her speech.
Pro-Palestinian protests have been happening at universities across the U.S., with similar demonstrations at the University of Texas at Austin, Yale University, and Columbia University. At the University of Texas, multiple students were arrested during a protest demanding divestment from companies supplying weapons to the Israeli Defense Forces. At Yale, 47 protesters were arrested, and at Columbia, the New York Police Department cleared out an encampment on campus and arrested students protesting Israel’s invasion of Gaza. Columbia’s president is facing calls to step down, and high-profile donors have suspended their support, though the board of trustees has expressed support for her amid the controversy.
Overall, tensions surrounding pro-Palestinian protests are escalating at universities across the U.S., with students demanding divestment from companies supporting Israel and facing backlash from administrators and law enforcement. The protests have led to arrests, campus closures, and controversies over freedom of speech and expression. As universities navigate these challenges, the impact on graduation ceremonies and campus dynamics remains a topic of ongoing debate and concern for students and administrators alike.
