Student Speaker Dramatically Goes Off-Script at Harvard Graduation
A Harvard University student speaker put the institution on blast Thursday morning when she dramatically went off script during her commencement address to slam the school for punishing more than a dozen of her peers for their activism.
Shruthi Kumar, the Harvard senior chosen to deliver the English address, sharply reprimanded the university leaders during her time at the podium. During her speech—which was titled “The Power of Not Knowing”—Kumar drew out a piece of paper containing off-script remarks hidden up the sleeve of her crimson gown.
“As I stand here today, I must take a moment to recognize my peers—the 13 undergraduates in the class of 2024 that will not graduate today,” Kumar told the crowd. She was referring to the 13 students who had been denied the opportunity to walk at commencement over the sanctions they’d received for participating in campus pro-Palestinian protests.