University of Southern California (USC) valedictorian Asna Tabassum was asked if she endorses the social media posts she shared calling for the complete abolishment of Israel, to which she replied, “I am not apologetic.”
After being asked in a recent CNN interview if she endorses “calls for the complete abolishment of Israel,” Tabassum said, “If you’re asking me if I stand for human rights, if you’re asking me if I stand for equality and unequivocal and unconditional right to life for all people, including Palestinians, then I’m not apologetic.”
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Notably, while the USC valedictorian’s Instagram account is currently listed as private, she provides a link in her bio that takes users to a website that calls for the “complete abolishment” of Israel.
“One Palestinian state would mean Palestinian liberation, and the complete abolishment of the state of Israel. This way is the only way towards justice,” the website states.
USC, meanwhile, has decided to not allow Tabassum to speak at the school’s commencement ceremony next month, citing “safety” concerns.
“Over the past several days, discussion relating to the selection of our valedictorian has taken on an alarming tenor,” USC Provost Andrew Guzman said in an open letter. “The intensity of feelings, fueled by both social media and the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, has grown to include many voices outside of USC and has escalated to the point of creating substantial risks relating to security and disruption at commencement.”
“After careful consideration, we have decided that our student valedictorian will not deliver a speech at commencement,” Guzman added. “While this is disappointing, tradition must give way to safety.”
“To be clear: this decision has nothing to do with freedom of speech,” the provost affirmed. “There is no free-speech entitlement to speak at a commencement. The issue here is how best to maintain campus security and safety, period.”
Tabassum, a first-generation South Asian-American Muslim, would have delivered her speech at USC’s graduation ceremony on May 10, CNN reported.
“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,” Tabassum said in a statement released via the Council on American-Islamic Relations in Los Angeles. “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.”
The university reportedly made its decision after USC student advocacy group Trojans for Israel pointed out that Tabassum had put in her Instagram bio a link that calls Zionism “a racist settler-colonial ideology” and advocates for the “complete abolishment” of Israel.
You can follow Alana Mastrangelo on Facebook and X/Twitter at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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