As commencements get underway across the country, Morehouse School of Medicine is demanding that one of its alumni not speak at its graduation. Rep. Rich McCormick (R-GA) was selected as speaker for the Morehouse School of Medicine’s commencement on May 16, with school leaders touting his appearance as a “homecoming.” Current students have begun a protest against his appearance, stating through a petition that his views and voting record in Congress vastly differ from the school’s foundational mission to improve the well-being of people and increase diversity in a field where Black people are woefully underrepresented. “As future physicians, we realize that we’re going to interact with diverse patients who have different perspectives, but we feel that someone who’s championing us on our graduation day and giving us a charge to move forward with the future should also uphold our values and the morals that we uphold,” Kiara Huff, a student at MSM. On Wednesday (May 6), students from the school held signs on campus calling for MSM to rescind its offer to McCormick to speak at graduation. One sign read “DEI Saves Lives.” McCormick, who has spoken at his alma mater before, still has eyes on attending the ceremony, saying he respects the “different opinions” about him delivering this year’s commencement speech, but stands by his “record of public service and support for policies that improve Americans’ well-being,” according to a statement obtained by the AJC.
