How USC's controversial decision on Asna Tabassum's valedictorian speech led to nearly two weeks of campus tension with 93 arrests and a canceled 'main stage' commencement.
The crowning of Asna Tabassum as USC valedictorian was supposed to be a time of pride for a university that has tried to shed its old image as a playground for the privileged by bolstering academics and diversity. In selecting Tabassum from close to 100 applicants with near-perfect GPAs and impressive extracurriculars, USC put the spotlight on a hijab-wearing Muslim daughter of Indian immigrants for its highest undergraduate honor.
said it had not received reports of threats to Tabassum or the commencement. In an interview at the time, Guzman, the provost, said Folt was not behind the decision to cancel the speech. A day later, Joel Curran, USC's senior vice president of communications, contradicted Guzman, saying the final decision was indeed the president's. Some faculty, administrators and parents of students questioned why the selection process did not include vetting of social media.
helicopters circled above. USC shut off public access to campus. Guzman, the provost, told academic deans that professors could move classes online. officers in riot gear staged outside the gates. Shortly after 5 p.m., dozens of officers marched onto campus, and an hours-long standoff with protesters began. By the evening, police had arrested 93 people, many of them students, and moved the remaining crowd off campus. Nguyen, the professor, was among the protesters. 'These were students with direct demands.
and campus security were present at the protest. And the tents, cleared out earlier, had returned. Times staff writer Jenna Peterson contributed to this report.
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