Howard University was forced to cancel a graduation ceremony after angry family members began banging on doors and breaking windows after the venue filled up.
The graduation ceremony for the historically black university’s College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences was halted before the keynote address after running out of space in Washington DC’s Cramton Auditorium.
Relatives of some of the graduates were seen on video chanting “Let us in” while banging on doors as the ceremony began Thursday.
Footage showed a shattered glass door as angry family members tried to push their way past security.
At least one person was injured in the commotion, according to DC officials. According to several reports, the injured person was a student being treated for a laceration.
Howard University was forced to cancel a graduation ceremony after angry family members began banging on doors and breaking windows after the venue was packed
Footage showed a shattered glass door as family members tried to fight their way past security
Dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences Gina Brown announced that the fire department had stopped the ceremony.
“Because of the size of the room and because our family members sometimes don’t know what to do, the fire department is now here to lock us down,” she said.
However, the D.C. Fire Department has denied halting the graduation ceremony.
The department said, “DC Fire and EMS did not shut down tonight’s event… At 6:42 p.m., we responded to the Cramton Auditorium for a medical local at the request of campus police.
“The patient was examined and denied transportation, and DC Fire and EMS left.”
Howard later said in their own statement that someone had been removed from the building before the ceremony and they came back and broke a window.
The school’s statement read: ‘This incident led to unrest among guests outside the facility, resulting in a disruption to the program.
“The guests present were immediately dispersed after this incident.”
Graduate Halle Ragoonanan shared NBCWashington She was heartbroken because she could not walk to receive her diploma in front of her family, especially as she graduated from high school in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Howard later said in their own statement that someone had been removed from the building before the ceremony and they came back and broke a window
Dean of the College of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences Gina Brown announced that the fire department had stopped the ceremony
However, the D.C. Fire Department has denied halting the graduation ceremony
Some students expressed sadness at not being able to walk during graduation
She said: ‘I couldn’t walk. I graduated magna cum laude and couldn’t even walk.
“I am the class of 2020. I didn’t get to walk for my high school diploma and I didn’t get to walk for my college diploma.”
It comes as other graduation ceremonies have been disrupted due to the war in Gaza.
Dozens of students stormed out of Duke University’s commencement ceremony in protest against guest speaker Jerry Seinfeld, who has supported Israel since the Oct. 7 atrocity by Hamas and throughout the war in Gaza.
The comedian, 70, received a mix of cheers and boos when he was introduced before students carrying flags and chanting “free, free Palestine” marched out of Wallace Wade Stadium on Sunday.