USC Cancels Main Graduation Ceremony Amid Pro-Palestinian Protests On

The University of Southern California announced Thursday it will not host its main commencement ceremony-a decision that comes a day after more than 90 students protesting in solidarity with Palestinians were arrested by the Los Angeles Police Department. USC is also facing criticism from students over its decision to axe a graduation speech by valedictorian Asna Tabassum, a biomedical engineering student whose social media posts supporting Palestinians were flagged by pro-Israel groups to USC, which they alleged were also antisemitic. The university said its decision to cancel her speech was based on unspecified security threats to her and the university’s commencement ceremony. USC, which also canceled all outside speakers for its graduation ceremony after barring Tabassum from speaking, is one of several universities in the U. S. being roiled by pro-Palestinian protests. Multiple University of Texas at Austin students were arrested Wednesday during a protest attended by more than 200. Similar to that of protesting USC students, the protest demanded the University of Texas divest its endowment from companies supplying weapons to the Israeli Defense Forces. About 47 protesters at Yale University were arrested Monday after more than 300 protesters gathered in campus streets. Columbia University has also become entrenched in protest, with the New York Police Department clearing out an encampment on campus and arresting students protesting Israel’s invasion of Gaza. The university’s president, Nemat Shafik, is facing calls to step down over the university’s handling of student protests. Several high-profile donors have suspended their support of Shafik, though Columbia’s board of trustees has voiced support for her amid the controversy. Yale Arrests Pro-Palestine Student Protesters As Tensions Escalate On Ivy League Campuses (Forbes)Texas Troopers Arrest University Of Texas Students During Protest (Forbes)Who Is Nemat Shafik? Columbia Board Backs President Amid Tense Protests, Calls For Resignation (Forbes)NYPD Clears Gaza Protest Encampment At Columbia And Arrests Students-One Day After University President Testified To Congress (Forbes)
All data is taken from the source: forbes.com
Article Link: www.forbes.com/sites/antoniop...
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