ORANGEBURG COUNTY, S.C. (WACH) — South Carolina Lieutenant Governor Pamela Evette is responding after students at South Carolina State University protested her selection as the university’s spring commencement speaker.
The silent protest took place at the Donna Administration Building at SC State near President Alexander Conyers’ office on Tuesday.
WACH FOX reached out to SC State officials, who say a commencement speaker for the May 8 ceremony has not yet been selected.
Evette claims the protests are linked to her and President Donald Trump’s pledge to eliminate DEI programs and abolish tenure at colleges and universities across the state.
She posted a video response on X following the protest:
While I was at the White House today, I heard about what’s happening on the campus of SC State University. Let’s be clear: facts trump feelings in the real world. President Trump and conservatives have done more for HBCUs than any administration in history. I must be doing something right because woke mobs are coming after me for being a champion of eliminating radical DEI scams on college campuses.So bring it on. Just like President Trump, I’ll never back down or bend a knee to the woke radicals. I’m ending DEI on campuses once and for all. Stay tuned. I’m going to have a lot more to say about this later. In the meantime, I look forward to celebrating commencement with the students and faculty at SC State.
In a separate release, Evette highlighted the McMaster-Evette administration’s support for South Carolina’s historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), referencing $2.4 million from the Governor’s Emergency Education Relief (GEER) Fund used to expand online instruction.
She also noted efforts to include tuition grants and financial assistance in executive budget proposals.
Democratic State Senator Deon Tedder issued a statement Tuesday evening, standing by the students:
I stand with the students of South Carolina State University who are speaking up and demanding to be heard. Commencement is about celebrating graduates, their families, and the sacrifices it took to reach that stage. It should not become a platform for partisan rhetoric or disrespect toward the very values HBCUs were built to defend. The students deserve a ceremony centered on them, their future, and their success. Further, a potential commencement speaker should not insult or attack the students they wish to address further.
An online petition to remove Evette as the commencement speaker has also been created and has received more than 2,000 signatures.
It argues that inviting Evette would be “a disservice to the values and mission” of the HBCU, citing concerns that her political positions do not align with the institution’s legacy of promoting diversity, inclusion, and social justice.
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Evette announced she’ll address the protest in a virtual press conference on Wednesday morning.
