Students and alumni of Adrian College, a private liberal arts school near Ann Arbor, Michigan, are upset that Riley Gaines, an anti-trans activist, will give the commencement address this weekend. They believe this goes against the school's mission of respecting all people and could harm LGBTQ+ students and Gaines herself.
R. Cole Bouck, creator of the Adrian College’s LGBT and Ally Pride scholarship, said, “Inviting this divisive and extremist symbol of hate to speak at the college graduation is a hurtful decision. As an alum and donor to the college, I see this as a bad investment.” Michigan Advance earlier this week.
Since 2022, Gaines has been campaigning against the rights of trans athletes. Her argument has expanded to include broader anti-trans claims, and she has gained support from conservative media.
Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking stated, “This is an important issue that should be discussed at colleges and universities. Adrian College welcomes Riley Gaines to our campus, and we believe our students will be inspired by her address.” announcement Adrian College President Jeffrey Docking declared that Gaines would speak at the spring commencement ceremony on May 5. “Adrian College has never avoided discussing controversial issues on campus. We welcome Riley Gaines to our campus and are confident our students will benefit from her commencement address.”
However, the announcement misgendered Thomas and incorrectly referred to her as “the first man who transitioned to win an NCAA Division I national championship.” The idea that people become transgender for the purpose of winning at sports is a transphobic myth.
Safe Space, Adrian College’s LGBTQ+ student organization, started a Change.org petition on the same day, asking the college to disinvite Gaines. The petition now has over 1,600 signatures toward its 2,500 goal. petition The college's board of trustees received a letter from Bouck, stating that Gaines’s “notoriety arises solely from her established record of intolerance and hate against trans persons and the LGBTQIA+ community more broadly – not just controversy, but HATE.”
He expressed support for allowing Gaines to speak in a forum where her anti-trans views could be challenged. He disagrees with having all students listen to her unchallenged opinions at their graduation ceremony.
The college’s board of trustees received a letter from Bouck, stating that Gaines’s “notoriety arises solely from her established record of intolerance and hate against trans persons and the LGBTQIA+ community more broadly – not just controversy, but HATE.”
Docking, however, remains unchanged in his position. He informed Michigan Advance that the choice to ask Gaines to speak at the college’s commencement was entirely his decision. He emphasized that he believes the issue of trans women participating in women’s sports should be discussed at the ceremony, but he declined to disclose his personal viewpoint on the matter.
“To begin with, this college does not support her perspective,” Docking stated. “Moreover, I believe that on college campuses, debates on topics like this occur at times. Occasionally, topics like this are presented.”
He is also not bothered by Bouck’s argument that the school’s graduation ceremony is not the appropriate place for this “debate.”
“I believe that with the amount of tuition that people pay for college, whether it’s here or elsewhere, they should expect to be challenged, presented with thoughtful topics, and things that need to be considered from the moment they arrive until the moment they depart,” Docking expressed. “So, I don’t think that a commencement address should only be focused on making everyone feel comfortable. I think that making people feel uncomfortable during a commencement address is very much in line with what colleges should be doing.”
In his letter to Docking, Bouck expressed concern that Gaines’s speech will only exacerbate animosity toward transgender people, and that the backlash to her presence at the May 5 event could even put Gaines herself in danger. “Extreme violence against trans people and incidents of mass violence have both skyrocketed over the past years and continue climbing. Why is Adrian College so interested and willing to stoke that fire so publicly?” Bouck wrote.
Docking informed Michigan Advance that the college has received angry and even threatening phone calls since the announcement. Nevertheless, he stated that no amount of negative feedback would lead him to retract Gaines's invitation.
Leann McKee, a 1984 Adrian College graduate who has since come out as trans, is one of the school’s alums who have spoken out against Gaines’s participation in the event. “She has no message to deliver other than she hates trans people. That’s her message,” McKee said. “Could she deliver an uplifting speech? Could she do all the things that you expect a commencement speaker to do? She could, but so could any member of the faculty that’s already there. They don’t need to bring in a controversial figure.”
“Her entire message is to downplay [trans people’s] experience, attempt to marginalize them, and garner public sentiment against them,” McKee added. “‘Let’s create laws to regulate trans people out of this. Let’s establish rules so that they can’t participate in sports. Let’s keep these people out of sight because ew, ick, we don’t like them.’”
