Chinese Harvard graduate’s speech controversy
A Harvard graduate’s call for “shared humanity” has drawn backlash from conservatives as U.S. visa policy toward Chinese students tightens.
The Rebel Yellow - Issue #78
A Harvard graduate’s call for “shared humanity” has drawn backlash from conservatives as U.S. visa policy toward Chinese students tightens. This issue also covers a pro-Palestinian MIT student banned from commencement, new ICE controversies, and a top defense official declaring the U.S. would go to war to defend Taiwan. Plus: a record-setting anime debut, Hawaii’s climate tax, and a breakout horror film performance from a visually impaired teen actor.
Chinese Harvard graduate’s speech sparks conservative controversy
A Chinese Harvard graduate’s commencement speech calling for “shared humanity” has ignited debate online as the Trump administration intensifies efforts to restrict Chinese student visas.
What she said
Yurong “Luanna” Jiang, 25, became the first Chinese woman student to speak at a Harvard graduation ceremony on May 29, delivering her nearly seven-minute address titled “Our Humanity.” Originally from Qingdao, China, she earned a full scholarship to study at Cardiff Sixth Form College in Wales before attending Duke University and completing her Master’s in Public Administration in International Development at Harvard Kennedy School.
Jiang emphasized global unity in her speech, telling fellow graduates, “If we still believe in a shared future, let us not forget: those we label as enemies — they, too, are human. In seeing their humanity, we find our own.”
She drew from her experiences with classmates from 34 nations, describing how the countries she “knew only as colorful shapes on a map turned into real people — with laughter, dreams and the perseverance to survive the long winter in Cambridge.”
Reactions
Jiang’s speech largely drew criticism on X, with conservative users accusing her of having Communist Party connections. One popular account followed by Elon Musk and some of President Donald Trump’s children alleged that she represented “a CCP-funded and monitored NGO” and was “parroting Xi Jinping’s diplomatic rhetoric about a ‘shared future for mankind.’”
Chinese netizens appeared more divided. Some praised Jiang’s message, with one RedNote user writing that her ability to “stand on an international stage and speak the heart of Chinese students has moved me to tears.” Others questioned whether her elite background represented typical Chinese students.
Why this matters
Jiang’s address came at a critical moment as the Trump administration had just revoked Harvard’s Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification — blocking the university from enrolling international students — and announced plans to “aggressively revoke” visas for Chinese students “with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.” With roughly 30% of Harvard’s students being international and about 2,000 coming from China, the policy affects over 277,000 Chinese students nationwide.
International students contributed over $50 billion to the U.S. economy in 2023, with Chinese students making up 16% of all graduate STEM students nationwide.
MIT class president barred from graduation after pro-Palestine speech
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s 2025 class president was barred from attending her graduation ceremony on Friday after delivering a pro-Palestinian speech that criticized the university’s ties to Israel during a commencement event the day prior.
What she said
Megha Vemuri took the stage at Thursday’s OneMIT commencement ceremony wearing a keffiyeh over her graduation gown. During the Indian-origin graduate’s four-minute speech, she praised students who protested the war in Gaza and condemned MIT’s financial ties to Israel. “Right now, while we prepare to graduate and move forward with our lives, there are no universities left in Gaza,” Vemuri said. “We are watching Israel try to wipe out Palestine off the face of the Earth, and it is a shame that MIT is a part of it.”
Vemuri specifically criticized MIT’s research connections, stating that “Israel is the only foreign military with which MIT has active research ties.” MIT reportedly received $2.8 million in grants, gifts and contracts from Israeli entities between 2020 and 2024. She concluded her speech by invoking MIT’s tradition of turning class rings outward, saying graduates “carry with us the stamp of the MIT name, the same name that is directly complicit in the ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people.”
The aftermath: MIT President Sally Kornbluth attempted to calm the crowd immediately after Vemuri’s speech, saying, “At MIT, we believe in freedom of expression. But today is about the graduates.” University officials later informed Vemuri she could not attend Friday’s undergraduate ceremony and was barred from campus until it concluded. MIT said the speech differed from what was submitted in advance, with the university claiming Vemuri chose to “deliberately and repeatedly” mislead Commencement organizers and lead a protest from the stage.
The big picture
Vemuri’s ban reflects growing tensions at universities where students have transformed graduation ceremonies into platforms for Gaza-related protests. These events unfold as universities navigate pressure from the Trump administration, which has been cutting federal funding for research and launching investigations into DEI programs. In an X post, House Speaker Mike Johnson called Vemuri’s speech “Ignorant. Hateful. Morally bankrupt,” urging parents to “avoid MIT & the Ivy League at all costs.”
Despite the controversy, Vemuri will receive her degree by mail and expressed no regrets, telling CNN she sees “no need for me to walk across the stage of an institution that is complicit in this genocide.” The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) condemned MIT’s decision, with Massachusetts executive director Tahirah Amatul-Wadud saying, “MIT must respect academic freedom and respect the voices of its students, not punish and intimidate those who speak out against genocide and in support of Palestinian humanity.”
ICE still can’t arrest Columbia student who joined pro-Palestine protest, judge rules
Federal immigration authorities will remain blocked from arresting Columbia University student Yunseo Chung after a judge on Thursday extended protection against her detention while deportation proceedings continue.
Catch up
Chung, a 21-year-old lawful permanent resident, has lived in the U.S. since leaving South Korea at age 7. She previously achieved a 3.99 academic record at Columbia. Immigration officials began pursuing her removal following her participation in campus activism related to Palestine, including a March 5 gathering at Barnard College where she was arrested and received a citation that was later dismissed.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents reportedly attempted to locate Chung at her university housing and her family’s Virginia residence in March but did not find her there. Officials have justified the deportation effort by claiming she engaged in activities they classify as supporting Hamas, which she disputes. Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) has condemned the government’s actions against Chung as politically motivated retaliation that demonstrates administrative overreach.
The judge’s decision
U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald challenged federal attorneys about their justification for detention on Thursday’s proceedings, emphasizing the significant personal harm such action would inflict. The court proposed allowing Chung to post bail without facing arrest, but government representatives could not commit to the arrangement without clearance from ICE supervisors who were unavailable.
Buchwald maintained the existing restraining order preventing Chung’s arrest through June 5, when both sides will return for another hearing.
Navy vet’s daughter remains in ICE detention despite U.S. citizenship claims
A Filipino woman has been detained at a Georgia immigration facility since March after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested her during a routine check-in, despite her family’s assertion that she is a U.S. citizen.
Catch up
Alma Bowman, 58, was arrested by ICE on March 26 during a scheduled appointment at the Atlanta Field Office, where she reportedly came in a wheelchair accompanied by her children and legal representatives. ICE then moved her that day to Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, run by private contractor CoreCivic, and began deportation proceedings to the Philippines.
Bowman’s father, Lawrence Bowman, served in the U.S. Navy and was stationed in the Philippines during the Vietnam War. She was born there in 1966 before her family relocated to the U.S. when she was 10. She has resided in Macon, Georgia, for almost five decades. Federal authorities reportedly revoked her permanent residency after a criminal conviction two decades ago for check fraud involving $1,200, which she repaid.
What her family is saying
Bowman was previously detained by ICE for nearly three years from 2017 to 2020 — during the first Trump administration — and testified about unauthorized medical procedures at the now-shuttered Irwin County Detention Center.
Now, her sons John and Chris describe severe family trauma. “There have been a couple of times I come in her room, and it feels like I can’t breathe,” John told Atlanta News First. She instructed them to sell her action figure collection if deported. “I couldn’t do it,” Chris added. “It would feel like giving up on her.”
U.S. Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) calls the detention illegal. “She’s an American citizen,” he said. “The fact that one of her parents was an American means that she is an American.” Meanwhile, family attorney Samantha Hamilton of the Asian Americans Advancing Justice argues ICE violated Policy 16001.2, which prohibits detaining potential U.S. citizens.
ICE gained backdoor access to nationwide license plate camera network: report
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has allegedly obtained informal access to a nationwide network of automatic license plate reader (ALPR) cameras by working through local police departments, despite lacking a direct contract with surveillance technology provider Flock Safety.
The alleged findings
Data obtained from the Danville, Illinois Police Department documents more than 4,000 searches of Flock’s artificial intelligence-powered camera system between June 1, 2024, and May 5, 2025, that contained immigration-related terms in search justifications, according to a 404 Media investigation. The records show local and state police departments performed database queries citing reasons such as “immigration,” “ICE,” “ICE+ERO” and “illegal immigration” across multiple states.
The scale of access appears significant: When Dallas police conducted searches labeled “ICE+ERO” on March 6, for instance, the queries accessed 6,674 separate camera networks containing 77,771 individual devices. Law enforcement agencies from Arkansas, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Louisiana, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia reportedly performed such searches, with those specifically marked “immigration” appearing only after Trump’s January 2025 inauguration.
Flock Safety reportedly operates over 40,000 cameras in more than 5,000 communities, automatically capturing license plates, vehicle colors and models for 30-day storage periods, with police typically searching this data without obtaining warrants or court approval.
What authorities are saying
Local officials have strongly disputed the allegations. Danville Police Chief Chris Yates emphasized his department’s adherence to Illinois statutes that forbid using ALPR data for immigration enforcement purposes. Meanwhile, Danville Mayor Rickey Williams Jr. declared that “what is being alleged is not happening.”
Other law enforcement agencies, however, have acknowledged conducting searches that assisted federal investigations. Multiple Illinois police departments reportedly confirmed they conducted searches to assist federal agencies informally. Deputy Chief Andrew Perley of Glencoe, Illinois, described one instance as “an informal request from Homeland Security Investigations into a criminal matter aside from immigration.” Missouri State Highway Patrol officials clarified that although their search reason was documented as “immigration,” the actual lookup “was related to a traffic stop with indicators of possible human trafficking,” according to the agency. Flock Safety maintained that customers “own and control 100% of the data collected by their Flock systems and choose who to share data with,” while stating that their technology has helped locate over a thousand missing persons.
Broader implications
The controversy comes amid expanding federal immigration enforcement efforts and ongoing legal challenges to surveillance practices. Legal challenges to warrantless ALPR searches are reportedly underway, with the Institute for Justice arguing these practices violate Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches.
These allegations also coincide with the Trump administration’s efforts to expand local police involvement in immigration enforcement through the 287(g) program, which permits ICE to delegate immigration authority to local departments, and a January executive order directing the Department of Homeland Security and ICE to authorize qualified local officers to perform immigration-related duties.
Pete Hegseth says U.S. will go to war to stop China from taking Taiwan
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. would take military action to stop China from invading Taiwan, outlining a defense policy that shifts strategic focus from Europe to Asia to deter what he called “an imminent threat” from Beijing.
Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on Sunday, Hegseth said the Trump administration is prioritizing the Indo-Pacific region as part of its effort to counter China’s growing military influence.
Indo-Pacific defense pivot
“President Trump has said that Communist China will not invade Taiwan on his watch,” Hegseth said. “So, our goal is to prevent war … and we will do this with a strong shield of deterrence …
But if deterrence fails, and if called upon by my commander-in-chief, we are prepared to do what the Department of Defense does best – fight and win — decisively.
Hegseth accused China of building up military capabilities at high speed and training regularly for an invasion of Taiwan. He cited intelligence that President Xi Jinping has directed the People’s Liberation Army to be ready for such an operation by 2027. He warned that any attempt to forcibly take Taiwan would have severe consequences for regional and global security.
China fires back
Chinese officials at the forum reiterated Beijing’s position on Taiwan, emphasizing that any attempt to separate the island from China would be met with firm opposition. Rear Adm. Hu Gangfeng, vice president of China’s National Defense University, dismissed U.S. accusations, calling them “attempts to provoke trouble, incite division and stir up confrontation to destabilize the Asia-Pacific region.”
In a separate statement on Sunday, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Hegseth’s remarks had “vilified China with defamatory allegations.” The ministry warned that the U.S. “should not play with fire” on the Taiwan issue.
“Hegseth’s remarks were filled with provocations and intended to sow division. China deplores and firmly opposes them and has protested strongly to the U.S.,” the ministry said.
Defense spending
At the summit, Hegseth further called on Indo-Pacific allies to significantly increase their defense budgets, suggesting targets of up to 5% of GDP. He emphasized the need for regional militaries to match China’s rapid modernization and deter potential aggression. He also warned against economic dependence on China, arguing it leaves countries vulnerable to coercion.
Citing NATO’s defense spending benchmarks, Hegseth urged partners to follow suit in Asia. The U.S. has reportedly asked Australia to raise its defense budget to 3.5% of GDP. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese responded that Australia would determine its own course, pointing to a 10 billion Australian dollars ($6.46 billion) military investment and a target of 2.4% by 2033–34.
Dine-and-dasher gets 22 years for attack that put New York restaurant owner in a coma
A man who left a restaurant co-owner in Albany, New York, with severe brain injuries after attempting to skip out on his bill was sentenced to 22 years in prison on Friday.
Catch up
Lucas Healey, 43, dined at Shogun Sushi and Sake Bar for two hours on May 29, 2024, building up a tab over $400 before trying to leave when his credit card processed only a $50 payment. Staff chased him down Madison Avenue, where he punched co-owner Su Wen Zheng multiple times. Zheng was knocked backward, striking his head on the pavement.
Healey also allegedly yelled racial epithets at staff, but prosecutors never filed hate crime charges despite initial consideration. Zheng spent nearly two weeks in a coma and nearly two months hospitalized.
Sentencing
Judge Roger McDonough imposed the 22-year term plus five years supervision, though he did not classify Healey as a repeat offender despite prior convictions for reckless endangerment and attempted robbery. Still, the judge dismissed Healey’s “faux remorse,” noting he blamed his Irish background, foster care history and unsubstantiated brain injury while denying he started the fight.
Zheng’s wife, Yaying Chen, has described her husband’s severe disabilities, including the inability to tell time, recognize colors or name fruits, with communication failures causing head-banging frustration. A GoFundMe campaign had raised $62,150 for Zheng’s medical bills.
Healey rejected a previous 20-year plea deal and will serve concurrent sentences.
Russian vlogger Vitaly Zdorovetskiy to serve jail sentence in Philippines
Russian vlogger Vitaly Zdorovetskiy will remain in the Philippines to serve time for criminal charges related to a series of disruptive public stunts, the country’s interior secretary confirmed over the weekend.
Philippine Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur “Jonvic” Remulla said Zdorovetskiy will not be deported and could be jailed for up to 18 months if convicted. The 33-year-old faces multiple counts of unjust vexation — a criminal offense under Philippine law that covers acts intended to annoy or distress others.
Zdorovetskiy was arrested in April after livestreaming several incidents in Metro Manila, including grabbing a security guard’s hat, entering a McDonald’s kitchen without permission and threatening a woman on the street. Philippine authorities said both Russia and the United States, where he holds a green card, have declined to accept him.
The vlogger had requested that the charges be dismissed due to mental health concerns, but Remulla said the case would proceed.
Did the “Lilo & Stitch” remake forget what “ohana” means?
Disney's 2025 live-action remake of "Lilo & Stitch" has sparked backlash for altering the original film's ending, with critics arguing it undermines the story's core message of family.
Spoiler alert: This story contains major plot details from the ending of the "Lilo & Stitch" remake
About the change: In the original 2002 animated film, Nani, Lilo's older sister, fights to keep their family together after their parents' death, emphasizing the Hawaiian concept of "ohana" — meaning family. The remake changes this narrative, with Nani relinquishing custody of Lilo to pursue a marine biology degree in California, leaving Lilo in the care of their neighbor, Tūtū.
What they're saying: The shift has led to accusations from fans on social media and forums that Disney disregarded the original's theme of familial perseverance. One Reddit user commented, "It feels like the live action just forgot what Ohana was all about." Another added, "Nani would never ever leave Lilo on her own in the original no matter how much she got on her nerves she still loves her."
Director Dean Fleischer Camp shared a link to a Forbes article that delved into "hanai" — a Hawaiian tradition of informal adoption within extended families. “For anybody questioning the ending of our film, this beautiful piece [...] nails it,” he wrote on X. He later added, “It seems like the people with actual lived experiences like this are the ones with whom this ending resonates the most.”
“Ohana” and “hanai”: In Hawaiian culture, "ohana" means family — not just by blood, but through love and mutual responsibility. The tradition of "hanai" reflects this broader concept of kinship and care. Both shaped the original film’s emotional core. The remake’s ending has prompted debate over whether it honors or contradicts these values.
In an earlier interview with Deadline, Camp said the team aimed to modernize and nuance the idea of "ohana." “It just felt like the right thing to do,” he said. “Given that Nani … had to abandon a lot of these dreams or defer them because she had to take care of her little sister … she might not have such an easy time buying into, ‘Nobody gets left behind.’”
The bottom line: Despite the controversy, the film has been commercially successful, grossing over $611 million worldwide as of June 1.
First-time actor Sora Wong delivers breakout performance in new A24 horror flick
Australian teenager Sora Wong, who has limited vision due to her coloboma and microphthalmia, makes her acting debut in the A24a horror film “Bring Her Back,” directed by Danny and Michael Philippou. The 14-year-old was cast as Piper, a blind girl, after her mother spotted a casting call on Facebook for an actor with visual impairment.
In an interview with People, Wong said she had never acted before but decided to audition at her mother’s encouragement, not expecting to land the role. “One of the main reasons why I was drawn and really determined to try and achieve this character was because I related to her in so many ways,” she said. “And I thought it was really important and amazing that I got to portray someone who I could relate with."
In the film, Piper and her stepbrother Andy (Billy Barratt) are placed with a foster mother (Sally Hawkins) following their father’s death. As the story unfolds, the siblings uncover a disturbing secret about their new guardian.
“Bring Her Back” debuted over the weekend to positive reviews and currently holds a “certified fresh” rating of 90% on Rotten Tomatoes. It earned a spot in the top five at the domestic box office during its opening weekend, grossing $7.1 million.