VCU students walk out of graduation protesting Youngkin’s speech

Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) students walked out of their graduation ceremony to protest a speech by Gov. Glenn Younkin (R-Va.).

About 100 of the 1,200 graduates at Saturday’s graduation ceremony filed quietly out of the Greater Richmond Convention Center, some wearing kaffiyeh scarves and signs reading “Teach Black History” and “Ban Books.” [do not equal] respect for learning”, The Washington Post reported.

Youngkin, who won the 2021 election, continued with his speech. The Hill has reached out to Youngkin’s office for comment.

The Post reported that the university of Richmond has a long history of having the sitting governor give a commencement address.

Earlier this week, the Virginia NAACP VCU chapter sent a letter to the Board of Visitors and the university president demanding that Youngkin’s invitation to speak be rescinded.

“Your administrative decision to continually delay the racial literacy requirement, as well as comply with Governor Youngkin’s requirement to view syllabuses, is undemocratic and anti-intellectual,” the organization said in the letter, reported by 13 News Now. “These actions not only undermine academic freedom regarding intellectual inquiry, but they also perpetuate a narrative that ignores the intricate nuances of racial history.”

The university handed out cards to attendees congratulating the graduates, but also said that if anyone disrupted the ceremony, they would be subject to removal, the Post reported.

The departure follows many other demonstrations at university graduation ceremonies and nationwide pro-Palestine protests taking place on university campuses. More than 2,000 people were arrested in demonstrations across the country.

Police used pepper spray to disperse a crowd at the demonstration on the VCU campus and 13 people, including six students, were arrested, according to the Post.

The students spoke with WWBT 12 at your sidesaying there is “a lot of angst” about Youngkin being chosen to speak.

They opposed several of Youngkin’s tenets, including the LGBTQ+ community and critical race theory.

Youngkin criticized university protests for overstepping the bounds when “you start building camps that are not allowed on college campuses, you intimidate other students, you are trying to disrupt the school, that will not be allowed.”

Last week, students disrupted the graduation ceremony at the University of Michigan, protesting the school’s investments in companies with ties to Israel.

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