Billionaire Calls Student Protests 'Antisemitic Burning Man,' Vows To Halt Donations To University Over Pro-Palestine Protests
Multiple billionaire investors are calling out their alma maters over pro-Palestine protests on college campuses throughout the country. Leon Cooperman, a billionaire investor from New York, said he would no longer donate money to Columbia University unless he "sees a change," adding that the university's students had "shit for brains" following anti-war protests on campus.
Cooperman joined Cliff Asness, a fellow billionaire investor who also said he would halt donations to his alma mater, the University of Pennsylvania.
The donors said the anti-war protests antisemitic and akin to hate speech with Asness calling a pro-Palestine event at the University of Pennsylvania “an antisemitic Burning Man.”
Students have had a long history of protesting wars in the U.S. Not all pro-Palestine rallies are against Jews: at a protest on Columbia University’s campus in New York City, pro-Palestine protestors chanted “Jews yes, Zionism no.”
Columbia University’s endowment is more than $13 billion, according to the most recent filings. Cooperman said he’s given about $50 million to the school throughout the years, accounting for less than .4% of the university’s total endowment.
Some influential pro-Israel figures are going even further to deter students by suppressing their protests throughout the country. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is running as a candidate for the Republican nomination for the 2024 presidential election, ordered Florida university system officials to disband a pro-Palestine student group called “Students For Justice In Palestine,” saying the group supports a "terrorist organization." The organization was at two state universities, the University of Florida and the University of South Florida, according to Reuters.
Bill Ackman, the billionaire investor and Harvard alumnus, spoke about a blacklist to ensure he doesn’t accidentally hire any students protesting against Israel on Harvard’s campus.
Read Next: Bill Ackman Vows Not To Employ Harvard Students Who Signed Letter Criticizing Israel
Photo: Israeli and Palestinian supporters rallied around 42nd street in New York on Oct. 9, 2023, for and against the terrorist attack against Israel by Hamas. Pro-Palestinian supporters march after the rally. Via Shutterstock
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