Editor’s note: The below copy was submitted to the Staten Islander News Organization by the Student Coalition at the College of Staten Island.
The text, verbatim:
Let the Students Speak! Free Speech Rally at the College of Staten Island
College of Staten Island protest. Image Credit – Staten Island Coalition
A coalition of College of Staten Island students, staff, faculty and alumni, and their organizations, held a campus RALLY on Tuesday, April 28 at 2:30 PM to demand reinstatement of the college’s decades long tradition of a live, rather than pre-recorded, address by the Valedictorian speaker at the commencement ceremony. President Timothy G. Lynch unilaterally, without even consulting faculty or students, instituted the “pre-recording” order at the 2025 commencement, and has declared his intentions to continue the policy at this May’s ceremony.
“This is censorship!” denounced student organizer Alec Courtney of the Fight to Win Student Worker Coalition. “The pre-recording order is clearly an attempt by the administration to prevent students speaking out and organizing on the important issues of the day, whether it be the genocide in Gaza, the illegal war on Iran, or the attacks on higher education. This cannot stand.”
The attempt to squelch speech by students on the important issues of the day contradicts the College of Staten Island’s own General Educational Goals. These goals include an emphasis on cultivating “Social Responsibility and Civic Engagement,” defined as “civic knowledge and engagement, both local and global; principled participation in activities of personal and public concern; [and] engagement with global issues, including the role of the United States in the world.”
Maya Corda, with the CSI chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, directly connected President Lynch’s order to the broader suppression of first amendment protected rights at CUNY, especially when it comes to Palestine. “The banning of the student commencement address at the CUNY Law school, the firing of four Brooklyn college adjunct faculty, and suppression of protests at CSI’s last two commencements have been aimed at squelching any discussion on the genocide in Gaza. The Palestine exception to free speech is a threat to the rights of all.”
The Professional Staff Congress Academic Freedom Committee has also called, in a letter to CUNY Chancellor Felix Matos and President Timothy Lynch, for reinstatement of a live valedictorian speaker at the CSI graduation. Anthony Alessandri, chair of the Academic Freedom Committee, wrote that “CUNY should be setting a precedent in standing up for the free expression of our students.” He added that the committee is “deeply concerned about the possibility of this policy being applied throughout CUNY.”
The rally began at 2:30 PM in front of building 1A and then was followed by a march to the fountain plaza behind Building 1P where speakers addressed the crowd.
The Free Speech rally is endorsed by the following organizations: Free Speech Movement at CSI, the Fight to Win Student Worker Coalition, Students for Justice in Palestine, Fight to Win at CSI, The CSI Chapter for the Professional Staff Congress.
College of Staten Island Student protest. Image Credit – Student Coalitions
Student protest at CSI. Image Credit – Student Coalitions
Banner Image: College of Staten Island Student protest. Image Credit – Student Coalitions
