Interim Chancellor Lee Roberts got a decidedly mixed reaction from graduating seniors when he took the podium Saturday night, after a few tumultuous weeks of protests and reactions over the ongoing war in Gaza. Those protests continued throughout the day on Saturday, as pro-Palestinian demonstrators rallied at South Building, some using red paint to leave handprints on the side of the building with the message “UNC has blood on its hands.” Other demonstrators put up a new tent encampment by the Bell Tower, replacing the one at Polk Place that UNC police broke up two weeks ago.
And inside Kenan Stadium, a handful of graduating seniors briefly raised a Palestinian flag, getting their own very mixed reaction – but otherwise the commencement ceremony itself went off without incident.
Speaking with 97.9 The Hill last week, Roberts downplayed the parallels between the current protests and the antiwar protests of the 1960s – but he did recall that earlier period on Saturday, while talking about the university’s mission.
“When Bill Friday was president, seeing the university through a period of great unrest, he kept faith with our core mission,” Roberts said. “‘The university’s job,’ he wrote, ‘is to provide our students the knowledge, skills, and sense of purpose with which to live in this troubled world. That is the test we shall have to meet.’ That’s as true today as it was then, (and) you all stand here as proof that we’re still meeting that test and we always will.”
Watch the full commencement ceremony on YouTube.
While Chancellor Roberts and the demonstrators heard boos as well as cheers, everyone applauded the commencement speaker, NASA astronaut and UNC alum Zena Cardman, whose address to the students was mostly – but not entirely – apolitical.
“You made it through a pandemic, lockdowns, tragedy and upheaval, and you still worked together in advocacy for greater causes and for those who do not have a voice,” Cardman said. “You have made injustice your enemy, you lift each other up, (and) that is a Carolina legacy I am honored to be part of.”
And while the school year may have ended contentiously, the end of Saturday’s commencement gave everyone a chance (at least briefly) to come together in celebration.
“Class of 2024, I am so proud of you,” Cardman concluded. “Part of your story will always be here, and I cannot wait to see where the journey takes you…
“Congratulations, and go Heels!”
Featured photo of Zena Cardman via UNC’s livestream of the 2024 spring commencement ceremony.
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