Rutgers University yanked its invitation to a prominent engineering alumnus days before he was scheduled to deliver a commencement address, citing complaints from graduating students about his social media activity related to Palestine.
Rami Elghandour, a tech entrepreneur and executive producer of the Oscar-nominated film The Voice of Hind Rajab, was set to speak at the university's New Brunswick campus on May 15. Dean Alberto Cuitino called him last week to cancel the engagement after students objected to posts Elghandour had published, though the dean did not specify which posts or how many students complained.
In an exclusive interview, Elghandour said Cuitino described the posts only as "opposed to their beliefs." The dean told him he personally supports people "saying what they think" but that the student issue was "with you and your beliefs," Elghandour recounted. Cuitino indicated there would be no replacement speaker and possibly none in future years to prevent similar controversies.
A Rutgers spokesperson confirmed the cancellation in a statement, saying the engineering school was "informed that some graduating students would not attend their graduation ceremony due to concerns about the invited speaker's social media posts." The university framed the decision as protecting the "celebratory spirit" of the event and ensuring no graduate felt forced to choose between personal convictions and attendance.
Elghandour has been vocal about Palestinian rights online and has shared posts that critics describe as antisemitic, including reports about Israeli soldiers allegedly abusing prisoners. He holds the title of chairman and CEO at Arcellx, a biotechnology company, and has also worked as executive producer on American Doctor, a documentary about U.S. physicians working in Gaza during the war.
The Rutgers incident fits a broader pattern of universities restricting speech around Palestine at graduation events. New York University has limited live speeches at this year's ceremonies, while the City University of New York's Law School banned student speeches entirely. The College of Staten Island, also part of the CUNY system, is pre-recording all student remarks. Last month, George Washington University alumna Cecilia Culver, barred from campus after criticizing the school's ties to Israel during her graduation speech last year, filed a lawsuit against the institution.
At the University of Michigan, history professor Derek Peterson briefly acknowledged "pro-Palestinian student activists" during a faculty address at commencement, noting how they had raised awareness about "injustice and inhumanity." The university president apologized for Peterson's comments, drawing condemnation from Republican politicians and calls to cut federal funding. More than 1,400 Michigan faculty members have since defended Peterson's academic freedom, as have the American Association of University Professors and the American Federation of Teachers.
Peterson said he deliberately avoided inflammatory language, specifically choosing not to use the word "genocide" in an effort to remain diplomatic. He defended his remarks as part of encouraging students to see themselves as heirs to a tradition of civic protest. "Michigan is not a finishing school for polite young men and women," Peterson said. "We don't train our students to be pearl clutchers who are offended at every speech that they find difficult."
Elghandour said he had been looking forward to discussing kindness as a superpower and succeeding without compromising beliefs, topics students have frequently asked him about. The university had previously celebrated him as an "impassioned champion" of gender equity and social mobility in an announcement that has since been removed from the web.
He noted that a law firm he hired to review his social media history found no hate speech, violence, or violations of his company's code of conduct. He told the dean the cancellation sent a "dangerous" message to students: "don't you dare speak up and say anything that you believe."
Elghandour described Palestine as "the moral issue of our time" and framed the cancellation as part of an "erosion of free speech and the first amendment."
Author James Rodriguez: "Universities claiming to champion free thought while silencing voices on geopolitics is the kind of contradiction that should trouble everyone, regardless of where they stand on the Middle East."
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