The board of Howard University has revoked the honorary degree awarded to Sean “Diddy” Combs following the release of a CCTV video showing the hip-hop producer hitting his ex-girlfriend Cassandra “Cassie” Ventura in a hotel hallway.
In a statement released Friday, the historically Black university stated, “His behavior as captured in a recently released video is so fundamentally incompatible with Howard University’s core values and beliefs that he is deemed no longer worthy to hold the institution’s highest honor.”
The footage, published by CNN, prompted a public apology from Combs, who expressed remorse for the incident. “I was disgusted when I did it. I’m disgusted now,” he said. “I went and sought out professional help. I got into therapy, going to rehab. I had to ask God for his mercy and grace. I’m so sorry.”
Howard University conferred the honorary degree on Combs in 2014. The institution has also decided to end a scholarship in his name and terminate a 2016 gift agreement, which included a $1 million donation from Combs’ foundation. The university’s statement confirmed that Combs’ name will be removed from all documents listing honorary degree recipients.
“The University is unwavering in its opposition to all acts of interpersonal violence,” the statement emphasized.
Combs has faced multiple lawsuits from four women, including Ventura, alleging sexual and physical abuse. While Ventura’s lawsuit was settled in November, Combs has denied all allegations of sexual assault. “Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the awful things being alleged,” he said in a statement last December, asserting that he would fight to clear his name.
In March, federal agents conducted raids on two of Combs’ properties as part of an ongoing investigation into sex trafficking. His lawyer criticized the action as an “unprecedented ambush” and a “gross overuse of military-level force,” maintaining Combs’ innocence.
