University of Southern California cancels graduation ceremony amid student protests
The University of Southern California (USC) has cancelled its main stage graduation ceremony as student protests over the war in Gaza grew on campus, the Guardian reported.
USC is one of many campuses across the country that have become centres of student demonstrations against the war, with hundreds of arrests across the country.
Universities are struggling to deal with growing student demonstrations that have drawn criticism across the political spectrum and become a focus of national discourse over the war in Gaza. The unrest led to the cancellation of classes, teacher protests and police actions against their own students.
USC announced the cancellation of the ceremony on April 25, a day after more than 90 protesters were arrested on campus. The ceremony was scheduled for May 10. The university has already cancelled a planned speech by the school's pro-Palestinian valedictorian, citing safety concerns.
The university said it will still host dozens of events, including all the traditional commencement ceremonies at individual schools where students walk across the stage and receive their diplomas.
The Los Angeles Police Department reported that more than 90 people were arrested during a protest on campus on April 24. One person was arrested on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon.
Elsewhere in Los Angeles, a new protest camp has sprung up at the University of California, with dozens of tents set up on April 25, according to local media reports. A video posted on social media showed a large number of students at what appeared to be a peaceful rally.
Although student protests against the war have been ongoing for months, the latest wave of demonstrations came after students at New York's Columbia University organized a pro-Palestinian camp on the school grounds. Columbia University's decision to send the NYPD to campus to arrest protesters and break up the encampment caused a huge backlash and prompted similar encampments to appear on campuses across the country in solidarity./BGNES
