The University of Southern California has decided to “release” guest speakers and honorees from attending this year’s commencement on May 10.
Among those who were set to be featured at the main commencement program were Wicked filmmaker Jon M. Chu as the commencement speaker, and honorary degree recipient’s tennis star Billie Jean King, Maria Rosario Jackson and Marcia McNutt.
“To keep the focus on our graduates, we are redesigning the commencement program,” the university shared in a memo Friday. “Given the highly publicized circumstances surrounding our main-stage commencement program, university leadership has decided it is best to release our outside speakers and honorees from attending this year’s ceremony.”
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The message continued, “We’ve been talking to this exceptional group and hope to confer these honorary degrees at a future commencement or other academic ceremonies.”
The news came after USC faced a wave of criticism this week after the Los Angeles private university announced that its valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, a first-generation Muslim student, would not deliver a commencement address — breaking the school’s tradition.
The university came to that decision after campus Jewish organizations, including Trojans for Israel, expressed their opposition to her being a commencement speaker, citing a pro-Palestinian social media link shared by Tabassum.
While USC said it canceled the speech due to security concerns, adding that it received notice that the commencement would be disrupted, Tabassum said in a statement that she was “shocked” and “profoundly disappointed” by the school’s decision.
“There remain serious doubts about whether U.S.C.’s decision to revoke my invitation to speak is made solely on the basis of safety,” she added, questioning the university’s reasoning.
After it was revealed that Tabassum’s speech was canceled, USC has been met with days of protests as people call for her reinstatement as a speaker.
