Biden tells Morehouse grads he hears their protests on Gaza

ATLANTA: US President Joe Biden urged Morehouse College graduates not to give up on democracy in a somber commencement address on Sunday, acknowledging their anger over the war in Gaza while warning about risk to American freedoms.

The speech, which would typically be a low-profile event, drew scrutiny as college campuses nationwide erupted in sometimes-violent protests over Biden’s support for Israel’s war against Hamas. But the campus of the historically Black men’s college remained calm, with only small and silent shows of protest.

Biden said he shared graduates’ concerns over the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and was continuing to push for a deal to pause the conflict in exchange for the release of hostages.

He said leadership can be “hard and lonely” and said frustration and anger about the conflict permeated his own family.

“This is one of the hardest, most complicated problems in the world. I know it angers and frustrates many of you,” he told the crowd. “It’s a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, that’s why I’ve called for an immediate ceasefire,” Biden said to applause.

A generational divide was apparent at the decorous commencement, as older alumni at times stood and cheered the president while current graduates sat in silence or offered polite applause.

Some students wore keffiyehs – the black-and-white head scarf that has become an emblem of solidarity with the Palestinian cause – around their gowns.

A handful of students turned their backs to Biden in silent protest. Morehouse’s valedictorian also called for a permanent and immediate ceasefire, garnering Biden’s applause.

Biden used the address, an election-year platform ahead of the Nov 5 contest against Republican candidate Donald Trump, to highlight his support for Black Americans and his push against racism and division that he says threatens the nation’s foundation.

“It’s natural to wonder: Does the democracy you hear about actually work for you?” he said. Even so, he added, Americans must continue “to call out the poison of white supremacy, root out systemic racism. Democracy is still the way.”

Biden challenged graduates to build on their historic education to lead and fight for freedom at home. Morehouse was founded in 1867 to educate Black people newly liberated from slavery. Alumni include the civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr.

Without citing Trump by name, Biden invoked the Jan. 6, 2021, attack by Trump supporters, some carrying Civil War-era Confederate flags, as well as attacks on Black election workers, attempts to restrict voting and extremists’ rhetoric toward immigrants.

Morehouse sits on a leafy campus near downtown Atlanta, the biggest city in Georgia, one of the most competitive battleground states in the 2024 race. In 2020, Biden became the first Democratic presidential candidate to carry Georgia since Bill Clinton in 1992.

Some Black students have drawn parallels between the experience of stateless Palestinians, apartheid South Africa and the Jim Crow South, which motivated earlier generations of protest. Israeli and U.S. officials reject those comparisons.

Morehouse and other historically Black colleges and universities have not been as convulsed by protests like those at Columbia University and the University of Southern California. Many of Biden’s top aides regard the protests as not reflective of the majority view of voters. In a statement after the ceremony, Morehouse said peaceful protests were part of its social justice tradition.

Biden, who speaks next week to graduates at the United States Military Academy, has maintained longstanding U.S. arms support for Israel despite the mounting death toll of its campaign in Gaza. He has threatened to cut off aid if Israel pursues its offensive in Rafah, where many civilians are taking refuge.