--- title: John Cornyn: Texas Southern University Cancels Speech description: Texas Sen. John Cornyn's commencement address at a historically black university has been canceled after sparking threats of protest canonical: https://time.com/4777968/texas-southern-university-john-cornyn-commencement/ author: Katie Reilly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-12T21:17:01.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-23T04:54:28.571Z article:section: Politics og:title: Texas Southern University Cancels Commencement Address by GOP Senator og:description: John Cornyn was scheduled to speak at the historically black university og:url: https://time.com/4777968/texas-southern-university-john-cornyn-commencement/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7a9916d4244f7c2/6988cd270a4a225d759ce262/gettyimages-651406028.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 4200 og:image:height: 2363 og:image:alt: Key Speakers At The 2017 CERAWeek Conference og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Texas Southern University Cancels Commencement Address by GOP Senator twitter:description: John Cornyn was scheduled to speak at the historically black university twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7a9916d4244f7c2/6988cd270a4a225d759ce262/gettyimages-651406028.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Texas Southern University Cancels Commencement Address by GOP Senator Amid Backlash > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=e74aaf9d-603b-4d0d-9340-8cd27a92e97b&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1)  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly May 12, 2017 9:17 PM UTC  Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, speaks during the 2017 CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference in Houston, Texas on March 10, 2017. Sen. John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, speaks during the 2017 CERAWeek by IHS Markit conference in Houston, Texas on March 10, 2017. F. Carter Smith—Bloomberg/Getty Images  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly May 12, 2017 9:17 PM UTC Texas Sen. John Cornyn’s scheduled commencement address at a historically black university on Saturday has been canceled it sparked opposition and threats of protest from students. The decision by officials at Texas Southern University to disinvite the Republican Senator comes days after [Education Secretary Betsy DeVos’ commencement speech](http://time.com/4772907/betsy-devos-bethune-cookman-controversy/) at the historically black Bethune-Cookman University was [disrupted by students](http://time.com/4774450/betsy-devos-commencement-boo-bethune-cookman/) who booed and turned their backs on her. “Commencement exercises are special moments for our students, their families and the entire University. Every consideration is made to ensure that our student’s graduation day is a celebratory occasion and one they will remember positively for years to come,” Texas Southern University said in a statement on Friday. “We asked Senator Cornyn to instead visit with our students again at a future date in order to keep the focus on graduates and their families. We, along with Senator Cornyn, agree that the primary focus of commencement should be a celebration of academic achievement.” University spokesperson Kendrick Callis declined to comment further about whether the decision was a result of the fallout from DeVos’ speech this week. A [Change.org petition](https://www.change.org/p/texas-southern-university-stop-john-cornyn-from-speaking-at-tsu-graduation) to stop Cornyn from speaking criticized his approval of DeVos and Attorney General Jeff Sessions as well as his stance on “sanctuary cities” and voter ID requirements, among other policies. “This is our graduation. We have the right to decide if we want to refuse to sit and listen to the words of a politician who chooses to use his political power in ways that continually harm marginalized and oppressed people,” said the petition, written by Rebecca Trevino. The petition encouraged graduating students and their families to turn their backs to Cornyn during his address. It gathered 863 signatures before his speech was canceled. The [commencement ceremony](http://www.tsu.edu/live/spring-2016-commencement/), which will take place Saturday, will still include Democratic Reps. Al Green and Sheila Jackson Lee, who are slated to speak, [the Texas _Tribune_ reported](https://www.texastribune.org/2017/05/12/texas-southern-university-cancels-speech-gop-sen-john-cornyn-amid-outc/). “Senator Cornyn was honored to be invited to address TSU’s graduates, but he respects the Administration’s decision and looks forward to continuing to engage with the University in the future,” a spokesperson for Cornyn said in a statement. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4777968/texas-southern-university-john-cornyn-commencement/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4777968/texas-southern-university-john-cornyn-commencement/"},"headline":"Texas Southern University Cancels Commencement Address by GOP Senator Amid Backlash","datePublished":"2017-05-12T21:17:01.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T04:54:28.571Z","description":"John Cornyn was scheduled to speak at the historically black university","url":"https://time.com/4777968/texas-southern-university-john-cornyn-commencement/","keywords":["Texas","Education","College","Commencement","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7a9916d4244f7c2/6988cd270a4a225d759ce262/gettyimages-651406028.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Katie Reilly","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltc7a9916d4244f7c2/6988cd270a4a225d759ce262/gettyimages-651406028.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Key Speakers At The 2017 CERAWeek Conference","caption":"Key Speakers At The 2017 CERAWeek Conference","creditText":"F. 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