USC Campus Closed After Pro-Palestine Protest Leading to 93 Arrests and Controversy Over Canceled Valedictorian Speech

The USC campus remains closed to the general public following a large pro-Palestine protest that resulted in 93 arrests by Los Angeles Police Department officers. The demonstrators, who were part of the “Gaza Solidarity Occupation” campaign, gathered at Alumni Park on Wednesday afternoon and refused dispersal orders issued by law enforcement officials around 5 p.m., leading to their peaceful detention one-by-one later that night. Prior protests sparked controversy after USC President Carol Folt canceled the pro-Palestine valedictorian’s graduation speech, alleging concerns about her speeches involving “inflammatory social media posts” and anti-Semitic language on social media platforms such as Twitter and Instagram. The Jewish Federation of Los Angeles expressed concern over antisemitism and intolerance towards Jewish students during the protests but supported peaceful civic discourse. In a full-page statement published Friday, USC’s president rejected “speech that is hateful” leading up to this week’s events.