After weeks of protest from the Bethune-Cookman University community, that followed news that its president, Edison O. Jackson, had invited U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos to deliver the keynote address at its 2017 graduation ceremony, the Trump administration appointee took the podium on May, 10. And a great swath of the graduating class showed that they weren't there for it, inviting her to the stage with resounding boos, before synchronously turning their backs.

DeVos would go on with her speech, holding back any sort of agitated response to the protest, while offering that she was nevertheless "grateful for the opportunity to speak and particularly with those who have disagreed with the invitation" for her to be there. "One of the hallmarks of higher education and of democracy is the ability to converse with and learn from those with whom we disagree," she continued.

While the Secretary continued to keep her poise, the university's beleaguered president got on the ball with an effort at implementing damage control, by threatening to shorten the ceremony by simply selecting to mail graduates their diplomas. It was an act of desperation from a man who has become the focus of calls for Bethune-Cookman to name a new president in light of his decision to have DeVos. At the root of the community's dissent are remarks the Secretary made back in February, when she attempted to legitimize her favor for charter schools among proponents from the black community, by claiming that historically black colleges and universities [HBCUs] are the "real pioneers when it comes to school choice."

DeVos would receive backlash over her assertion, with the Change.org petition to unseat president Jackson stating that her remarks showed that the Secretary "doesn’t understand that HBCUs were created in response to the exclusion of African Americans from mainstream institutions. Secretary DeVos has no understanding of the importance, contributions, and significance of HBCUs."

Source: twitter.com