Valedictorian speaks out after USC cancels graduation speech

A controversial decision by leaders at the University of Southern California relates to the debate raging on many U.S. campuses over the war in Gaza. The school says it's canceling a planned graduation speech by its valedictorian, Asna Tabassum, due to safety concerns. This follows the online response to a pro-Palestinian link that Tabassum posted on her Instagram account.

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[kevinjenner]

AIPAC should be required to register under FARA…End foreign election interference.

[Hamid-cmpt]

She doesn’t care about oppressed women and minorities in Muslim countries 🤦‍♂️

[loo]

“When Tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty”

[ryanbushka]

Her little powerpoint link attached to her social media would be proof enough to be like yea nope that speech is not happening LOL

[BrianM-]

Im sure she would have much more free speech in palestine and other arab nations, they let women run the show, right?

[johnnyparatrooper]

The Valedictorian at my school was a Muslim Guy who made fun of America and White people for 12 minutes.

Sprinkled with a healthy amount of “No one gave the brown Muslim kid a chance”

The irony being, he was in the STEM program I couldn’t get into…

And he had all the scholarships…

[ansalicru]

Imagine being selected because of DEI to provide the valedictorian speech from "100 other equally qualified candidates", and then using DEI as a crutch to complain about having the speech canceled at a PRIVATE university

[Lets_Go_Somewhere]

Congratulations that she is learning her first lesson from real life university : life does not go as planned ; you don’t get what you want even you think you deserve it; there are positive or negative consequences after actions.

[jokendrick]

Big deal. All the protests here are NOT going to stop war over THERE. She isn't running the show and the school does have to use caution. Do NOT give her any more air time.

[cvn]

Too bad, so sad. These cancellations due to "safety concerns" have been happening to conservatives on campus for the last five years. And lately it has been Asna's buddies, the Hamas supporters, that have been the cause of concern for safety. Maybe a college commencement is not the time to give a highly biased and one-sided political diatribe. And that is what we know it would have been.

[treepiesinc]

She should move to Muslim country where she will get justice and freedom of speech.

[axel-nfbc]

I bet her speech will be nothing but hate I'm actually glad she got silenced

[deannekliene]

A grad speech is NOT the place for a political opinion....

[lindag]

she was not “the valedictorian”:there actually were several hundred candidates of equal caliber, and was picked before her social media was revealed. Caring about people in Gaza is fine.. but she outright had antisemitic tropes and agreed with violence against Jews.She is a liar and hypocrite.

[harryradar]

I missed the part where she condemns Oct 7 as a terrorist attack. . .

[carlmcnabb]

It is a graduation speech, not a platform for political views.

[anupsharma]

She can move to Iran, Afgh or Syria and have her podcast.Have some Uyghur guests.

[binasarmah]

why media is giving so much important a hateful person. Media is so hungry.

[D.Edward]

Will this degree holder take what she learned from USC back to GAZA and help her people rebuild? 'nuff said?
"cheers!"

[daylightmoon]

If she is so passionate about talking about this, let her rent a hall and make a speech. It is inappropriate to politicize a graduation. Allowing just her view is not freedom of speech. She uses questionable and loaded words like "genocide." She never says the truth that there is a war in Gaza which Hamas started on October 7th.