Few universities on the West Coast can compete with the grandeur of the University of Southern California’s commencement ceremony. Flags flying. The trumpet blew loudly. Tens of thousands of relatives from around the world flocked to the Los Angeles campus to cheer on the newly minted alumni. There were lunches served under chandeliers and very important Speakers: Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, took the stage last year with the “Avengers” theme song. before sending the starting address.
This week, however, the competition has been severely tested, plagued by weeks of protests and controversy on campus. The Class of 2024 will have no grand commencement ceremony on the main stage, no Hollywood execs dispensing wisdom to graduates across the university.
While smaller celebrations will take place at the university’s 23 schools and academic units, at least two keynote speakers have publicly withdrawn from the school’s commencement ceremony, and others have quietly pulled out. backed out at the last minute.
The school of dramatic arts confirmed Monday that Liza Colón-Zayas, who plays Tina on the FX series “The Bear,” “can no longer join us.” According to an anonymous representative, actor Jaren Lewison, of the Netflix series “Never Have I Ever,” is reconsidering his commitment to reaching thousands of graduates at two major commencement ceremonies. Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. earlier this week. Two of the three speakers at the engineering school’s ceremony suddenly disappeared from the school’s graduation website.
The verdant grounds – usually covered with rows of folding chairs at this time of year, as if a mass wedding were taking place – were closed to visitors without qualifications behind a system of stations TSA-like controls. Movement will be strictly controlled at the start. Families of graduates will need special digital tickets to travel between locations. Bags will be searched and banners, beach umbrellas, selfie sticks and other devices that could be repurposed for political protest will be confiscated.
A hastily arranged party at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum will look as grand as usual, but it remains unclear how many of the 18,000 graduates and their relatives will attend the weeknight event.
Ella Blain, 23, who blamed university senior leaders for rescinding her graduation from the School of Dramatic Arts. Ms. Blain, who has spent much of her life imagining her own USC graduation, a self-described “fourth generation Trojan” from Pasadena, called this year’s graduation “a joke ”.
As student protests over Israel’s war in Gaza collide with graduation ceremonies across the country, universities are working to preserve some parts of the age-old rite of passage. In this time of global conflict, that aspiration turns out to be a noble imperative: a ceremony that somehow honors a sea of young men in caps and gowns and thousands of their relatives without violating the law. violate freedom of speech, stifle joy or create conditions for rogue protests.
At some schools, that challenge is daunting. Last weekend, protesters disrupted ceremonies at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Indiana University in Bloomington and Northeastern University in Boston.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the United Nations, stepped down as the University of Vermont’s commencement speaker under pressure from student groups protesting the Biden administration’s support for Israel. Arizona’s public universities have increased security and barricades ahead of ceremonies this week. On Monday, Columbia University Cancel the main groundbreaking ceremony, leaving only smaller, individual school events. .
At USC, where commencement ceremonies will begin Wednesday, university leaders are trying to hold the school’s famous graduation ceremony together amid backlash over a series of moves to The aim is to prevent potential conflict and instability.
In mid-April, USC canceled a speech by valedictorian Asna Tabassum, after pro-Israel groups complained about a pro-Palestinian link on her social media profile. Four days later, the university announced that it was “redesigning the commencement ceremony” and canceled its keynote by an alumnus, Jon M. Chu, director of “Crazy Rich Asians.”
“The USC provost called me at work,” said Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academy of Sciences, who is scheduled to receive an honorary degree. “They just said that, given the chaos, they thought it best to postpone the awarding of honorary degrees, and I said I completely agreed.”
This decision only escalated the uproar. Days later, pro-Palestinian students attempted to set up camp on campus and university officials summoned Los Angeles police. The subsequent protest ended with the arrest of 93 people, of whom more than a third were unrelated to the campus. The next day, the university announced that it would cancel the main commencement ceremony entirely.
Since then, USC has struggled to manage the fallout.
“This has just been a train wreck,” said Ms. Blain’s mother, Annette Ricchiazzi, 52, a USC alumna and former university employee, referring to the “inconsistent and difficult” handling. understanding” of the university leadership regarding the cancellation and protest. “Many parents expressed disgust and opposition.”
In a message to the school, President Carol Folt emphasized the university’s respect for free speech and its responsibility to protect students. Authorities have announced in turn that protesters will be subject to disciplinary action and that plans to hold about 47 satellite groundbreaking ceremonies are “completed.”
And normalcy has prevailed in some corners of the 47,000-student campus.
A representative for actor Sean Penn – known for his progressive views on international affairs – confirmed that he remains on track in addressing pharmacy school graduates, which the school has been working with Community Organized Relief Effort, a nonprofit he co-founded, to distribute Covid -19 vaccinations at Dodger Stadium during the pandemic.
California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu, one of the state’s most prominent liberal jurists, remains committed to giving the keynote address at the law school, according to spokesman Merrill Balassone.
Phil Chan, co-founder of Final Bow for Yellowface, an organization that pushes for the elimination of demeaning depictions of Asians in ballet, says he will keep his commitment to the dance school to promote the message your integration.
Still, he admits, “it is a very uncomfortable position.”
In contrast, writers C Pam Zhang and Safiya Umoja Noble, a MacArthur Fellow, removed from the keynote speaker role for opening ceremonies at the Rossier School of Education — citing the police invitation to the school, the arrest of dozens of protesters and the decision to censure Ms. Tabassum.
At the engineering school where Ms. Tabassum, the valedictorian, will graduate, professors are trying to restore her speaking opportunities.
A resolution of the engineering school’s faculty executive council asked her to speak at the commencement ceremony. The school’s principal, Yannis C. Yortsos, did not respond to questions about whether the request was approved.
And a petition, signed by 400 professors and expected to be discussed by the Faculty Senate on Wednesday, demands that the university apologize to Ms. Tabassum, while also calling for criticism both Dr. Folt and the university president.
Adding to the drama: the engineering school’s website no longer lists two previously announced graduation speakers: Kevin Crawford Knight, chief scientist of ride-hailing company Didi Global, and Zohreh Khademi, chief operating officer by Microsoft. A school spokesman did not respond to questions about whether Ms. Khademi and Mr. Knight would withdraw, and neither could be reached for comment.
A university committee selected Ms. Tabassum, who is Muslim and of South Asian descent, from about 100 undergraduates with a GPA of nearly 4.0. Her selection as graduation speaker sparked backlash from some. pro-Israel groups. Who protest to a pro-Palestinian website she linked to in a social media account.
Citing threats of a “disruption,” the university canceled the valedictorian speech, a school tradition.
Ms. Tabassum, who grew up east of Los Angeles in suburban San Bernardino County, said in a statement that she was “extremely disappointed” and questioned the school’s motives. Now she faces harassment. An organization called Accuracy in Media, known for defrauding students, created a website calling her USC “a leading anti-Semite.”
Hossein Hashemi, a professor of engineering, said Ms. Tabassum, an ambitious doctor, was respected by many faculty members. “At this point, she probably wishes she hadn’t even been elected valedictorian,” said Dr. Hashemi, who is leading a campaign on her behalf.
Not all the pomp has been lost. The last-minute party hosted by the school on Thursday night will include the Trojan Marching Band, fireworks and drone shows.
“Not going to lie, it sounds like a fun event,” said Dustin Jeffords, 37, who will receive a master’s degree in communications management. He, his wife, his parents, his in-laws and two siblings all planned to go there.
Still, he said, because he arrived late to college, after his military service, he was especially excited about USC’s big commencement ceremony, with its bells and whistles, with its hope. born to get it.
“These convocations are wonderful, but this big one with pomp and circumstance is a big deal and something I have been looking forward to,” he said. “Having the finish line disappear before your eyes is disappointing.”
