Kristi Noem faces indignant protesters as she collects doctorate at South Dakota college | EUROtoday

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, a former South Dakota governor, confronted protests as she obtained an honorary doctorate at Dakota State University in Madison, as the varsity hosted its graduation ceremonies on Saturday.

Protesters confirmed up with indicators to point out their displeasure on the number of Noem as this yr’s graduation speaker. The secretary has been on the forefront of President Donald Trump’s hardline immigration agenda and mass deportation efforts.

“We don’t think that she is somebody that deserves any sort of honor from anybody,” protester Susan Wicks advised Dakota News Now. “She’s currently right now violating the constitution, deporting people to foreign detainment centers without any due process.”

“I think that recently she’s shown herself to be a tool of the Trump administration and implementing policies that go against the Constitution of the United States,” fellow protester John Nelson advised the outlet.

Wicks added that the college “didn’t listen to the town, the faculty or their students, and we think that’s abhorrent.”

At the Dakota State Fieldhouse, Noem obtained an honorary doctorate in public service. The college pointed to Noem’s work advocating for the college and its packages specializing in cybersecurity.

During the ceremony, Dakota State University President José-Marie Griffiths mentioned that as South Dakota governor, Noem “was always ready to listen to our proposals, ask insightful questions to learn more about our plans, and was eager to move forward to support those initiatives.”

Some college students selected to not take part within the ceremony. Max Lerchen, who graduated with a grasp’s in enterprise administration, was a type of who took half after contemplating protesting as he disagreed with the number of Noem “from the get-go.”

“This is a degree that I’ve worked hard for and many others have worked hard for,” Lerchen advised Dakota News Now. “While I support the decision of those to not participate and I respect them for using their voices that way, I did not want to give Secretary Noem the power over me making decisions regarding my accomplishment and my day, and I’m very happy to see many others make that same choice as well.”

“I wanted to make sure I spent the day with my friends and my family, the people who supported me and make sure that I still celebrated regardless of the decision made,” he added.

Some college students who selected to protest mentioned they had been locked out of campus buildings the place that they had saved their indicators.

Lerchen, nonetheless, mentioned he didn’t suppose it was intentional.

“A lot of our facilities around here, when they’re not in use, are locked. That’s not an uncommon thing,” he advised Dakota News Now.

He added that the college “made a decision that I disagree with to select and honor Secretary Noem with a degree, but I do not think any of the actions by the university were meant to be malicious.”