There was a standing-ovation at George Washington University’s Smith Center on May 17 when Cecilia Culver deviated from her authorized commencement speech and read from her own prepared remarks criticizing the university for its refusal to divest from “the apartheid state” of Israel and for the school’s silencing of pro-Palestinian students over the last year and a half. Culver, an economics and statistics graduate, has been banned from campus and is under investigation for other possible violations of school policies. On May 19 the university issued a press release stating that Culver’s conduct at the ceremony “was inappropriate and dishonest: The speaker submitted and recited in rehearsal very different remarks than those she delivered at the ceremony.” The university stated that it will continue its endowment investment strategies and academic partnerships with Israel, and will not support any boycotts or divestment calls.
Speaking at the nearly full arena of 5,000, Culver said, “I am ashamed to know my tuition is being used to fund this genocide.” Culver continued, “The horrors unfolding halfway across the world may be easy to ignore, for those lacking a moral backbone. For the rest of us, these atrocities cause us to take stock in our own complacency in the imperialist system.” After her speech there was raucous applause and chants of “Free, Free Palestine!” and some graduates held signs, including, “Israel bombs, GW pays.”
On May 18 the GW Faculty and Staff for Justice in Palestine posted on Instagram that, “Within hours of her remarks, CC [Cecilia Culver] began to receive public threats on Instagram, and yet the University only responds with carceral logic announcing their investigation of her, with no denouncement of the hatred she has received.” A group called Palestine Legal announced that it would provide legal aid to Culver.
On May 16 New York University withheld a diploma for Logan Rozos, who spoke against the genocide in Gaza at his graduation ceremony. At Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in Richmond, administrators have withheld diplomas from three students and have informed three other students that they are under investigation for violations of school policies when about 40 students attended an unapproved gathering on April 29 to mark the one-year anniversary of the Gaza encampments on campus. One of the VCU students who will not receive her diploma, Zahra Jalajel, said that she was in class at the time that she was accused of attending the banned gathering. Another VCU student said, “It’s a scare tactic. It’s very clear they don’t know what they’re doing and are discriminating against the Palestinian students—whether they were in class or on the lawn. They’re choosing retaliation and retribution. They can try to take away a degree or a diploma, but they won’t silence me.”
Be sure to watch the special May 20th afternoon update on worldwide mobilizations against the genocide in Gaza posted by The LaRouche Organization, which opens with clips from Culver’s remarks—and the thunderous support from her fellow graduating students.
