Jerry Seinfeld knows how to handle awkward moments on stage. Still, the initial reception he faced at Duke University’s commencement ceremony on Sunday reflected a more mixed audience than usual.
As Seinfeld, who has recently been vocal in his support for Israel, received an honorary degree, the comedian nervously smiled as dozens of students came out and chanted “Free, Free Palestine.” I was watching over him.
Many in the crowd heckled the demonstrators. A few minutes later, as the last protesters filed out, he approached the microphone. His first words were: Oh, what a wonderful day! ”
In his commencement speech, Mr. Seinfeld was almost deliberate, opting for a tight comedy script sprinkled with life advice rather than fully responding to the outcry over his attendance.
Still, parts of the speech appeared to defend different kinds of privilege and allude to the elephant in the room.
“I grew up as a Jewish kid from New York,” he said, to applause from the crowd. “If you want to be a comedian, that’s a privilege.”
Outside Duke University’s stadium, alumni walked around campus chanting, “Disclose, sell, we won’t stop, we won’t rest.” Once they arrived at the green space, hundreds of people, including faculty, staff, relatives and other protesters, joined them and organized a makeshift graduation ceremony for them.
As they prepared to throw their hats in the air, Mr. Seinfeld continued his speech inside Wallace Wade Stadium, praising his generation’s commitment to inclusivity and not hurting the feelings of others. Although he praised them, he told the students, “It’s worth sacrificing the occasional discomfort.” Please smile. ”
Mr. Seinfeld, who has two children attending Duke University, has been uncharacteristically vocal about his support for Jews in Israel in recent weeks while promoting his latest film, “Unfrosted,” which chronicles the invention of the PopTarts. was making a statement.
Typically an apolitical comedian with a penchant for putting punchy spins on mundane observations, Mr. Seinfeld is now engaged in the type of celebrity that few people associate with him. It has received both criticism and praise. Since the Oct. 7 attack in Israel, he has signed letters in support of Israel and posted serious messages on social media about his dedication to Israel.
His wife, cookbook author Jessica Seinfeld, recently took to Instagram to promote and claim to have helped raise funds for the protests at the University of California, Los Angeles. (She condemned the violence that occurred in the counter-protests that followed.)
In December, Mr. Seinfeld traveled to Tel Aviv to meet with hostage families and spoke calmly about the aftermath of a missile attack that occurred during his trip.
Still, his comments on the issue were somewhat muted.
“I don’t preach about it,” he told GQ last month. “I have personal feelings about it, and we discuss it privately. It’s not part of what we can do as a comedy, but my feelings are very strong.”
On Sunday, Mr. Seinfeld addressed the crowd and told students: Now it’s Duke. ”
But not everyone at Duke University laughed at Seinfeld’s joke.
The Rev. Stephen Weathers Sr. was an ordained minister in the American Baptist Church and received his Ph.D. The Divinity professor had written a letter to the university before the ceremony asking for the comedian’s removal, citing Seinfeld’s continued and strong support for Israel.
Shreya Joshi, an alumnus and one of the protest organizers, said she and other seniors, faculty and pro-Palestinian supporters held a walkout and an alternative graduation ceremony after Duke chose Seinfeld as a speaker. He said he has started planning.
Joshi, 21, who studied history at Duke University and plans to attend law school at the University of Chicago, said missing her 2020 high school graduation ceremony because of the pandemic hurt, and that seniors still want one. He said he was there. You need to create it this year, even if it means creating it outside of official university channels.
And that pain pales in comparison to what the people of Gaza are experiencing, she added.
“The fact that we were going to sit here and have our own celebration?” Joshi said. “In the face of all this, it felt trivial. Have you ever seen a little violin? Something like that.”
Joshi said they tried to complete the main graduation ceremony in a way that caused as little disruption as possible. They chose to leave while Mr. Seinfeld was being awarded an honorary degree because “none of us particularly wanted to hear about Seinfeld.”
