Fordham University punishes student for commemorating Tiananmen Square anniversary

Published July 17, 2020 8:58pm ET



If you heard that a student was punished for commemorating the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, you would probably assume the incident happened in China. But you’d be wrong.

Rising senior Austin Tong has been disciplined by Fordham University in New York for violating university regulations on bias and for threats and intimidation. Tong’s offenses were two Instagram posts. The first was a picture of slain retired police Capt. David Dorn with the caption, “Y’all a bunch of hypocrites,” referring to the Black Lives Matter movement. The second was an image of Tong holding a legally acquired firearm and the caption, “Don’t tread on me,” along with a hashtag referencing the Tiananmen Square Massacre, posted on the 31st anniversary of the event.

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