Colleges Could Lose Millions Over Pro-Palestinian Protests

Colleges could lose millions as influential donors continue to cut off funding to schools in protest of administrators' responses to pro-Palsetinan protests amid the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Hamas, on October 7, led the deadliest Palestinian attack on Israel in history, and Israel subsequently launched its heaviest airstrikes against Gaza. As of Monday, at least 1,400 people have been killed in Israel, the Associated Press reported, citing the Israeli government. More than 8,306 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, the AP said.

Since the attack, many college students have taken to social media to voice their thoughts and concerns as both pro-Israel and pro-Palestinian student groups across the country have weighed in with statements. However, those statements were soon met with in-person protests, provoking strong reactions from each side.

As college administrators continue to grapple with how to respond to demonstrations, several institutions are reportedly facing pressure from powerful financial backers over what they see as insufficient condemnation of Hamas' attack on Israel.

Columbia University, Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania are all facing financial threats and direct cut off from influential donors.

Newsweek reached out to the three universities for comment via email.

At Harvard, The Wexner Foundation, a nonprofit founded by billionaire former Victoria's Secret CEO Leslie Wexner and his wife, Abigail, said in a letter to the university that it's breaking off its 34-year partnership ties with Harvard, alleging the school has been "tiptoeing" over Hamas' attacks.

The Wexner Foundation's statement came after a coalition of student groups at Harvard released a letter shortly after the first attack, blaming Israel for the deadly attacks by Hamas. A spokesperson for the group later wrote in a statement that the group "staunchly opposes violence against civilians — Palestinian, Israeli, or other."

Harvard's response was criticized by The Wexner Foundation, along with others, as the university did not address the letter directly until three days after it was posted.

Harvard President Claudine Gay condemned "the terrorist atrocities perpetrated by Hamas" as "abhorrent" and said that the student groups didn't speak for the institution.

UPenn has seen a similar influx of high-profile donor backlash.

Private-equity billionaire Marc Rowan, former U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman, hedge fund billionaire Cliff Asness, and Law & Order creator Dick Wolf have all halted donations. The donors argue UPenn leaders did not go far enough to condemn a multi-day Palestine Writes Literature Festival last month that they allege included speakers with a history of making antisemitic statements.

Billionaire Ronald Lauder, another powerful financial backer of the school, is also threatening to do the same if more isn't done to fight antisemitism.

Venture capitalist David Magerman is the latest major donor cutting off financial support to the Ivy League school, calling for all "self-respecting" Jews to do the same. Magerman posted a letter on Tuesday sent to UPenn leaders in which he took issue with UPenn President Liz Magill's decision to hold the festival and her initial response to the terror attacks on Israel.

Magill, who faces calls to step down as president, condemned antisemitism in a statement before the Palestine Writes festival. However, amid the growing backlash from donors, Magill later acknowledged UPenn "should have moved faster to share our position strongly and more broadly."

The donor backlash has led pro-Palestinian alumni to criticize, in an October 18 open letter, the UPenn administration and the influential donors for overlooking the treatment of Palestinians in the Israel-Hamas war.

"Reports from U.N. and W.H.O. experts have highlighted the humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding," the letter said. "Over a million individuals have been displaced, with countless lives lost or forever altered."

Billionaire Columbia University alum Leon Cooperman, who is Jewish, said during an interview with Fox Business last week that he would no longer donate money to the university, citing a walkout organized by Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace at Columbia that same day and a recent rise in antisemitism.

In response, university spokesperson Samantha Slater said in a statement to the Columbia Spectator, "This is a time of crisis for many members of our community and we are focused on providing the support they need while keeping our campus safe."

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