USC valedictorian defends support for the abolition of Israel
Muslim student Asna Tabassum clarifies the online posts she made prior to being barred from speaking at the USC commencement ceremony.
A Muslim University of Southern California (USC) valedictorian who was barred from giving a graduation speech said on Tuesday she is "not apologetic" for the anti-Israel views she expressed online, including calls to abolish the Jewish state.
USC student Asna Tabassum told CNN she’s not sorry about promoting "unequivocal and unconditional right to life for all people, including Palestinians," which she claimed was the point of her anti-Israel social media posts that resulted in the school canceling her speech.
"It’s unfortunate that, you know, human rights is controversial," Tabassum said, after claiming that her teachers and peers at the university were the ones that helped to shape her views.
USC valedictorian Asna Tabassum speaks to CNN's Abby Phillip about the posts she shared online that ultimately got her valedictorian speech canceled by the school.
Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Andrew T. Guzman announced on the provost's website that the biomedical engineering major would not be delivering her speech following threats to the school made after her speech was originally announced.
The university told The Los Angeles Times that threats had been made through letters, phone calls, and emails to USC because of its decision to have someone critical of Israel give the address.
Tabassum was accused of promoting "antisemitic writings" with her posts by the activist group We Are Tov, which also noted the valedictorian linked out to a page calling Zionism a "racist settler-colonial ideology."
The Daily Mail also reported she allegedly liked Instagram posts from "Trojans for Palestine" and called for the "complete abolition" of Israel.
Host Abby Phillip pressed her guest, noting that one of the links she posted "called for the complete abolishment of Israel. Abolishment of Israel was in the actual language."
"Is that something that you endorse?" Phillip asked.
Tabassum responded, "The abolishment of the state of Israel, I‘d like to clarify, is the abolishment of an apartheid system. It inherently is a system that subjugates Palestinians as dehumanized. And it subjugates Palestinian life as not worth the same as other human life."
USC valedictorian Asna Tabassum will no longer speak at the school's commencement ceremony. (X/Screenshot/Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
"Is that a yes then?" Phillip followed up, to which the student said, "I think a yes or a no would be an injustice to the issue. And I think that any sort of ideological debate or any sort of academic discourse is worth clarification and worth discussion."
In his Monday announcement about canceling the speech, Guzman insisted USC’s decision had nothing to do with punishing Tabassum’s views, but everything to do with keeping her, her fellow students and university faculty safe.
In response, antisemitism watchdog group "StopAntisemitism" accused USC of making the valedictorian out to be the victim, telling Fox News Digital, "What’s turned into denying the Jewish right to self-determination has now been masked by false calls of Islamophobia."
However, non-profit organization "End Jew Hate" praised the university’s decision in a statement, saying, "#EndJewHatred thanks the administration of USC for heeding the concerns of thousands of its supporters who joined in demanding that the school reconsider its decision to allow Asna Tabassum to speak as valedictorian at commencement ceremonies for the graduating class."
It added, "USC wisely acknowledged safety concerns in allowing the speech to go forward, as it is undeniable that the safety of Jewish students has been jeopardized every time antisemitic and anti-Zionist rhetoric has been shared on campus, especially after the October 7th terrorist attacks against Israel."
In a statement given to Fox News Digital, USC reaffirmed Guzman's statement, saying, "the decision had nothing to do with the background or viewpoint of the valedictorian, but was instead based on a careful and holistic review of the situation from a safety and security standpoint."
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"While the decision was difficult, it was necessary to maintain and prioritize the security of the USC community during the coming weeks, and to allow those attending commencement to focus on the celebration our graduates deserve. Nothing can take precedence over the safety of our community."