Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans rescinded an invitation to United Nations Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield to speak at the university’s commencement. It was the second school to do so.
The University of Vermont also canceled Thomas-Greenfield’s commencement address. The reason is the protests on campus.
Both schools pointed to pressure from students and the community over the Biden administration’s support for Israel in its war against Hamas.
“The vast majority of students want to be able to enjoy a commencement ceremony free of disruptions,” wrote Xavier President Dr. Reynold Verret in a letter. He called the university’s decision to disinvite Thomas-Greenfield “regrettable” and said that it had decided to do so “together with Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield’s team.”
That is the problem – a small number of students at universities compared to the general enrollment is disrupting campus life for everyone. It’s graduation time now and ceremonies that are scheduled to honor the graduates are being revised or, in some cases, canceled altogether.
Xavier announced that the ambassador would be the commencement speaker on May 5. More than 1,700 people signed a petition demanding that her invitation be pulled. The university caved and canceled her invitation.
The petition called on the university to “end the politicization of our commencement ceremony.” It used Thomas-Greenfield’s record at the U.N. as the excuse to cancel her speech. She has previously voted against calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as the U.S. Ambassador to the U.N.
Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has repeatedly voted against a ceasefire in Gaza, resulting in the decimation of all 13 universities in Gaza, the loss of over 30,000 lives with thousands more remaining in the rubble from violence, and the continuation of the genocide in Gaza. Palestinians in Gaza draw upon the experiences of their brothers and sisters in America during the segregation era. Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield has not played a direct role in the furthering of the Xavierite mission; she has not contributed to the scholarly success at Xavier, has not represented our mission through her actions as UN ambassador, has allowed for the continuation of systematic oppression, and does not represent our student body. Moreover, her presence poses a potential source of disruption in what should otherwise be a day of celebration.
The student petition reads like Hamas propaganda. Declaring that the U.N. ambassador “does not represent the student body” is to assume that the whole student body supports the side of Hamas, which is a false claim.
The ambassador’s spokesman, Nate Evans, said, “Ambassador Thomas-Greenfield looks forward to continuing to engage with young people on campuses and other forays across the country to inspire the next generation of diplomats, as she has recently done in Pennsylvania, Texas, and New York.”
Recent visits to schools by Thomas-Greenfield include a tour of a high school in Philadelphia. The school held a school-wide assembly. She met privately with a group of Palestinian students. There wasn’t mention of Jewish students at the school or a private meeting with them.
The University of Vermont disinvited Thomas-Greenfield last week. University President Suresh Garimella addressed the school community with a letter. He wrote about three points in the letter, which included reassuring students that he heard their protests against the Israel-Hamas war. He went on to state that violence would not be tolerated. Targeting other students is unacceptable and the protesters have to follow university rules during protests.
But, then he caved on the commencement speaker’s invitation.
Third, we are looking forward to the upcoming Commencement ceremonies and the opportunity to celebrate our 2024 UVM graduates. After their years of hard work and commitment to success, they deserve a weekend of ceremony and celebration befitting their accomplishment. It is with regret that I share that our planned speaker, Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield, will not be joining us to deliver the Commencement address.
It seems to me that the way forward for events like graduation ceremonies is for universities to move ahead as planned. Don’t deny the majority of students the celebration of such an important milestone. A minority of malcontents who allow outside professional agitators to join their protests should not be appeased. Students and their families deserve better.