Asna Tabassum, the University of Southern California's valedictorian who has come under fire for her pro-Palestinian views, has hit out at the university for "rewarding hatred" by barring her from speaking at graduation.
In a letter to the USC community on Monday, Provost Andrew Guzman said the decision to cancel Tabassum's commencement speech was "necessary to maintain the safety of our campus."
Guzman said attacks against the valedictorian for her pro-Palestinian views have taken on an "alarming tenor" and "escalated to the point of creating substantial risks relating to security and disruption at commencement."
Guzman's letter did not name Tabassum, a biomedical engineering student with a minor in resistance to genocide. But he said that USC officials chose the valedictorian from almost 100 applications from graduating seniors who qualified for consideration based on their GPAs.
Newsweek has contacted USC for comment via email.
In a statement responding to the decision to cancel her speech, published via the Council on American–Islamic Relations (CAIR) website, Tabassum said she felt the university has "abandoned" her.
"Although this should have been a time of celebration for my family, friends, professors, and classmates, anti-Muslim and anti-Palestinian voices have subjected me to a campaign of racist hatred because of my uncompromising belief in human rights for all," Tabassum, who described herself as a first-generation South Asian-American Muslim, said in her statement.
"This campaign to prevent me from addressing my peers at commencement has evidently accomplished its goal: today, USC administrators informed me that the university will no longer allow me to speak at commencement due to supposed security concerns."
She added: "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. I am not surprised by those who attempt to propagate hatred. I am surprised that my own university—my home for four years—has abandoned me."
She said there are "serious doubts" about whether the decision was made solely on the basis of her safety "because my request for the details underlying the university's threat assessment has been denied, and because I am not being provided any increased safety to be able to speak at commencement."
Tabassum added that she "chose to minor in resistance to genocide, anchored by the Shoah Foundation, and have learned that ordinary people are capable of unspeakable acts of violence when they are taught hate fueled by fear.
"And due to widespread fear, I was hoping to use my commencement speech to inspire my classmates with a message of hope. By canceling my speech, USC is only caving to fear and rewarding hatred."
Newsweek has reached out to Tabassum through CAIR.
Tabassum was attacked by campus and outside groups after USC President Carol Folt announced her as the 2024 valedictorian earlier this month.
Trojans for Israel called for Folt to reconsider the choice because it said Tabassum "openly traffics antisemitic and anti-Zionist rhetoric" in a statement posted on Instagram on April 11.
The group said Tabassum's Instagram bio features a link to a page that calls Zionism a "racist settler-colonial ideology" and advocates for the "complete abolishment" of Israel.
In a joint Instagram post, the accounts for We are Tov and Israel War Room said Tabassum "openly promotes antisemitic writings" in her Instagram bio and liked Instagram posts from a group called Trojans for Palestine.
Tabassum's Instagram bio links to a page that says "learn about what's happening in Palestine, and how to help." Among the links on the page is one that defines Zionism as a "racist settler-colonial ideology that advocates for a jewish ethnostate built on palestinian land."
Israel has been waging war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip since the Palestinian militant group carried out an attack on October 7 that killed 1,200 people in Israel and led to the kidnapping of 250 others. The Israeli offensive in Gaza has killed more than 33,000 people and caused widespread devastation, The Associated Press reported. In January, the International Court of Justice called on Israel to "take all measures" to prevent a genocide of Palestinians but did not demand an immediate cease-fire.
Pro-Palestinian groups have called for USC to allow Tabassum to give her commencement speech.
"USC cannot hide its cowardly decision behind a disingenuous concern for 'security,'" Hussam Ayloush, the executive director of the Los Angeles chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said in a statement.
"Even though USC has maintained Asna's position as valedictorian, the cowardly decision to cancel her speech empowers voices of hate and censorship, violates USC's obligation to protect its students and sends a terrible signal to both Muslim students at USC and all students who dare to express support for Palestinian humanity."
The USC Palestine Justice Faculty Group said it "unequivocally rejects" the decision to cancel Tabassum's speech.
"The Provost's action is another example of USC's egregious pattern of supporting anti-Palestinian and anti-Muslim racism," the group said. "We demand that this decision be revoked immediately."
Update 4/16/24, 7:10 a.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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