Billionaires consider pulling support for Columbia amid protests

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Robert Kraft is one of several billionaire philanthropists who have said they are rethinking their financial support for Columbia University amid anti-Israel protests at the school.

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The New England Patriots owner said in a statement through his Foundation to Combat Antisemitism organization that he was “deeply saddened” to see anti-Semitic hate as students and some faculty protest and occupy the New York City school’s grounds until it divests from companies with ties to Israel.

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“I am deeply saddened at the virulent hate that continues to grow on campus and throughout our country,” Kraft said in the statement. “I am no longer confident that Columbia can protect its students and staff and I am not comfortable supporting the university until corrective action is taken.”

Kraft, who founded The Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life on campus in 2000, said he was “tremendously grateful” to attend the university, but it’s “no longer an institution I recognize.”

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“It is my hope that Columbia and its leadership will stand up to this hate by ending these protests immediately and will work to earn back the respect and trust of many of us who have lost faith in the institution. It is my hope that in this difficult time, the Kraft Center at Columbia will serve as a source of security and safety for all Jewish students and faculty on campus who want to gather peacefully to practice their religions, to be together and to be welcomed.”

Leon Cooperman, a billionaire investor who is chairman and CEO of Omega Family Office, said he hasn’t committed to withdrawing his support just yet, but will donate when asked.

“I’m uncomfortable with what’s going on at the school,” Cooperman told CNBC. “But you know, I don’t want to hold the administration responsible for demonstrations. It’s these kids that are out of control. They have s*** for brains.”

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Industrialist Len Blavatnik, the founder of Access Industries, may pull funding to the university as well.

“Columbia University’s leadership must take immediate steps to ensure that Jewish students are protected from threats and intimidation, and that those who violate their policies are held to account,” Blavatnik told the New York Post.

On Monday, Columbia announced it will hold classes virtually after students set up encampments on school grounds last Wednesday, hours ahead of school president Minouche Shafik’s testimony at a U.S. congressional hearing into the university’s response to anti-Semitism.

In an email to staff and students, Shafik said she requested New York City police to clear the encampment as it “severely disrupts campus life, and creates a harassing and intimidating environment for many of our students.”

By last Thursday afternoon, more than 100 students had been arrested after being warned to vacate the encampments.

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