The Problems of Commencement Speech

The 2024 graduation season was marked with protests over and university oversight of commencement speeches. Commencement speech-related incidents are nothing new. History has shown that they are, in fact, American tradition. What is less settled is what type of speech commencement speech falls under, whether courts or academia should exercise control over it, and if so, to what degree.

In seeking to answer this question, this Article discusses government speech, the public forum doctrine, and the purpose of commencement speeches. Through examples, both real and hypothetical, this Article demonstrates the difficulties in classifying the forum and intent of commencement speech. This Article then argues that courts should, consistent with other applicable laws, respect the legitimate range of basic purposes schools may pursue in organizing and carrying out their commencement ceremonies. A legitimate variety of commencement speech policies should be legally permitted to bloom and then flourish, or wilt, without undue judicial interference.