Conan O’Brien addresses graduates at Harvard University

“If you carry your victories lightly, other qualities — kindness, originality, courage, humor, and humanity — have room to emerge.”

The commencement capped off the college careers of students who were present through several politically fueled controversies at Harvard, as well as attacks on academic freedom from the highest levels of the US government.

Seniors graduating on Thursday were sophomores when their campus became embroiled in strife surrounding pro-Palestinian student protesters during the 2023-2024 school year, after the deadly Oct. 7 attacks on Israel.

Just three months later, then-president Claudine Gay stepped down after giving disastrous congressional testimony on the issue.

More recently, the Trump administration has unleashed a pressure campaign against the university in an effort to exert more control over Harvard’s policies. As a result of resisting the administration’s demands, Harvard lost access to billions in research funding and international students feared having their visas canceled.

Clad in a crimson and black gown, statistics PhD graduate Johann Gaebler said he had many colleagues whose resources were slashed by the federal government.

Even though federal research money was restored, the threats were shameful, he said.

“That’s been something that’s affected an enormous number of people, and it’s really hurt the scientific process in the whole country,” said Gaebler, who will soon start work as a professor at New York University.

Harvard’s president, Alan M. Garber, seemed to reference the long-running funding clash in his remarks, telling the crowd that “truth without liberty is a fire without air.”

“Our cause is just, our principles are worthy, and our contributions to the common good are vital,“ he said. ”This moment demands of us ongoing vigilance and unyielding effort as we continue to defend the university and its ideals.”

The annual graduation exercises coincided with the sixth week of the longest strike in the history of the Harvard Graduate Student Union.

Members picketed outside more than a dozen entrances to Harvard Yard, and their bullhorns, albeit from a distance, punctuated commencement speeches for nearly three hours.

Graduate student union members who were awarded diplomas said that striking made them feel a stronger sense of camaraderie on graduation day. “Like commencement, striking is coming together,” said Sudipta Saha, the union’s former vice president. “We’re able to celebrate the work we’ve done, but also keep fighting for the contract issues that are still outstanding.”

On stage, O’Brien, who graduated from Harvard in 1985, mixed politics with humor, taking repeated jabs at the Justice Department’s ongoing civil litigation against Harvard, to the delight of many in the crowd.

He quipped that he is also suing the Ivy League school and laid out a number of faux grievances from his college days.

“I’m suing Harvard for the cast-iron bunk bed that greeted me upon my arrival” on campus, O’Brien said to laughter. “I’m suing Harvard for my less than spectacular undergraduate sex life. For me, having a three-way meant adding a second mirror to my dorm.”

Referring to the Trump administration’s efforts to curb visas for international students, the former late-night host said the federal government apparently believes the school admits too many people from foreign nations.

“Who knows, they may have a point,” O’Brien said. “After all, what has any foreigner ever added to our American culture, with the possible exception of music, literature, art, cuisine, fashion, architecture, dance, scientific breakthroughs, and the core of our moral codes and ethical beliefs.”

A number of students spoke at the ceremony, including Kiesse Nanor, who delivered her address entirely in Latin to cheers from classmates.

Senior Noah Eckstein, meanwhile, urged the crowd to see the humanity in all people, regardless of their background or political beliefs.

“Whenever you meet someone you disagree with, stand up for what you believe in, absolutely,” he said. “But also ask the other person about their beliefs. Ask them how they got there.”

After the ceremony, families posed for photos in and around Harvard Yard as gleeful graduates tossed their caps in the air. Others held flower bouquets to their chests, beaming with friends and loved ones.

Sidonie Brown and Mohan Hathi, who grew up in Brookline and Cambridge, respectively, posed as their parents took photos.

Hathi, a musician, will spend nine months in India studying classical Indian singing, he said.

Brown had plans of her own.

“I’m going to learn to drive and start applying to jobs,” Brown said with a laugh.

During her time on campus, Harvard had been shaped by a number of crises, she said. She began her undergraduate studies during the COVID-19 pandemic, took a few years off, and returned to a campus rocked by protests.

“I’ve seen many different eras of this university in only a few years,” Brown said. “Because of Harvard’s place in the spotlight, it kind of becomes the poster child for all universities.”

Travis Andersen can be reached at [email protected]. Claire Thornton can be reached at [email protected]. Follow Claire on X @claire_thornto.