by ABBY LUONG
EDITOR IN CHIEF
At the University of Southern California (USC), Asna Tabassum, a biomedical engineering major and first-generation South Asian-American Muslim, was selected as the 2024 valedictorian with a GPA greater than 3.98. The honor typically includes delivering a speech at USC’s main commencement ceremony on May 10.
However, on April 15, the university provost announced that Tabassum’s speech would be canceled due to “substantial risks relating to security and disruption” that had arisen from social media and ongoing Middle Eastern conflicts. The decision was made in light of escalating tensions that the university deemed too risky to manage at the commencement.
In response, Tabassum expressed her profound disappointment through a statement released via the Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. “Today, USC administrators informed me that the university will no longer allow me to speak at commencement due to supposed security concerns,” she said. “I am both shocked by this decision and profoundly disappointed that the University is succumbing to a campaign of hate meant to silence my voice.”
The controversy appears to have stemmed from backlash by Jewish student groups, who criticized a link in Tabassum’s Instagram profile to the website freepalestine.com. The groups accused the site, and by extension, Tabassum, of being anti-Semitic and anti-Zionist.
Following the announcement about Tabassum, USC also decided to withdraw other outside speakers and honorees from the ceremony, including Jon M. Chu, the director of the film Crazy Rich Asians. Despite this, USC has not provided details on any specific safety threats. The university’s decision has led to widespread outrage and confusion among students and faculty, many of whom have expressed shock at the circumstances leading to the cancellation.
Demonstrations related to the situation have intensified, including a pro-Palestinian encampment at USC that led to the arrest of 93 students and activists last Wednesday.
In light of the controversy, USC has announced that its main commencement ceremony on May 10 will be canceled, although satellite ceremonies at various USC schools will continue as planned.
The Mainsheet 