Boston (AP)  -- A key state lawmaker has added his voice to those calling for the University of Massachusetts to revoke an honorary degree awarded to Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe.

Rep. Kevin Murphy said Monday that continuing to honor Mugabe runs contrary to the values the university stands for. The Lowell Democrat co-chairs the Legislature's Committee on Higher Education.

Mugabe received an honorary doctorate of law from the UMass-Amherst campus in 1986, when he was hailed for ending an oppressive white rule and establishing an independent Zimbabwe. But in the two decades since, Mugabe has been condemned for attacks on dissidents and accused of running a corrupt government.

Murphy says he'll ask the UMass Board of Trustees at its June meeting to revoke the degree, something the school has never before done.