These Rutgers donors say they're cutting the school off, citing antisemitism on campus

Marvin and Eva Schlanger are shutting their checkbook in order to send a message to Rutgers University.

The New Jersey natives, both proud Rutgers graduates, contribute to the school and an array of other educational institutions through their Florida-based nonprofit, the Eva and Marvin Schlanger Family Foundation.

But the Schlangers, who have donated over $130,000 to Rutgers, recently announced they are halting contributions to New Jersey's flagship university over what they consider its poor response to antisemitism on campus in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war.

They are not alone. Donors around the country have been closing their wallets to academic institutions they say promote hatred of Jews or have become dangerous for Jewish students in the weeks since Hamas' terrorist attack on Oct. 7. The Schlangers object in particular to an investigation of a Jewish Rutgers Law student who challenged a video posted by a student group.

The Schlangers, in a letter to Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway, wrote, “You have an obligation to ensure that students are protected from intimidation, and that the university’s administrative processes are not misused.”

They vowed to suspend their donations and encourage others to do the same until they are satisfied that Jewish students on campus are protected.

The conflict has convulsed American campuses since Hamas killed 1,200 people in Israel and took another 240 hostages. Israel responded with weeks of bombing and an invasion of the Gaza Strip that has left 13,000 dead, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Reports of anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim harassment at U.S. schools have been on the rise.

Flexing financial muscles

Among the philanthropists who have sought to flex their financial muscles are Leslie Wexner, the former Victoria's Secret CEO, whose foundation donated nearly $1.8 million to Harvard University in 2021. He said in a letter to the school last month that he was cutting ties with Harvard because its leaders had failed to take a "clear and unequivocal stand against the barbaric murders of innocent Israeli civilians."

Harvard President Claudine Gay had already released a video statement on Oct. 12 condemning Hamas' "barbaric atrocities." But the university has also faced criticism after a coalition of student groups released a statement that put the blame for the terror attack solely on Israel.

In another case, a series of donors called for the resignation of top officials at the University of Pennsylvania, saying they had failed to condemn a conference held on campus that included speakers accused of making antisemitic remarks.

Arnie Draiman, an American-born philanthropic consultant who now lives in Jerusalem, said contributors are increasingly willing to withhold funding to campuses where they feel Jewish students are unsafe. "They all want to avoid negative PR," he said of the schools. "It's not about the size of your donation, but how much noise you make when you pull your money out. On the flip side, you want to give your donation where it makes the most difference."

Law student may face sanctions

The Schlangers said they cherished their undergraduate years at Rutgers. But in recent weeks, they've been disappointed to hear repeated tales of antisemitism on campus and what they see as the school's inadequate response.

The Schlangers said their attention was initially piqued when they heard about the case of Yoel Ackerman, a first-year Rutgers Law student who said he was punished by the school and its Student Bar Association after he complained about a video the association had shared on Instagram.

Ackerman said the video denied the Oct. 7 atrocities by Hamas and accused Israel of staging the attack. When Ackerman tried to warn the Rutgers Jewish Law Students Association about the video, the university opened an inquiry into his conduct and the Student Bar Association attempted to impeach him, he told The Record and NorthJersey.com.

The school's investigation remains open, he said, and consequences could be as serious as expulsion. "I have been given zero due process throughout," he said, adding that he has hired an attorney to fight the case.

Rutgers responds: 'Hatred and bigotry have no place'

Dory Devlin, a Rutgers spokeswoman, said the school couldn't comment on specifics of the case.

"The situation regarding Ackerman involves claims and counterclaims between students in student organizations. Rutgers does not comment on the conduct of the internal affairs of student groups," she said. "In the event that the behavior of students, faculty or staff violates university policies, claims regarding violations will be duly investigated."

She continued that, at Rutgers, "hatred and bigotry have no place, nor should they have a place anywhere in the world. We believe that antisemitism, Islamophobia and all forms of identity-based discrimination are unacceptable wherever and whenever they occur."

As for the Schlangers' decision to withhold contributions, she said, "The university understands that donors make personal decisions about their support of the university, but we believe that it would be inappropriate to comment on those individual decisions."

Efforts to reach the Student Bar Association were unsuccessful.

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Jewish students say they feel unsafe

Some Jewish students at Rutgers have complained about an increase in hostility on the New Brunswick campus, including pro-Palestinian rallies where protesters have shouted "From the river to the sea," a phrase that some consider a call for the elimination of Israel. Students have complained about death threats against Jews online and harassment of Jewish fraternity members.

In mid-October, a poster in the online forum YikYak wrote, "Palestinian protestors there is an Israeli at AEPI (a Jewish fraternity) go kill him." University spokeswoman Megan Schumann said a Rutgers student believed to have posted the message, 19-year-old Matthew Skorny, was charged with bias intimidation, terroristic threats and false public alarm.

Lisa Harris Glass, chief executive officer of Rutgers Hillel, a Jewish student organization, said such incidents have occurred with increasing regularity. "Jewish people on campus, not just students, but adults, are frightened," she said in an early November interview. "They are encountering this hate even in places we wouldn't expect to find those things, even in extracurricular places."

In another incident, a carload of people outside of the Jewish fraternity allegedly threw eggs at students walking into the house and shouted antisemitic vulgarities. The next day, plastic bullets and an empty gas canister were placed outside the Rutgers Hillel building, Glass said.

In the month after the Hamas terror attack, antisemitic incidents in the United States increased by 316% compared with the same period last year, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The organization's data shows that in the period between Oct. 7 and Nov. 7, over 124 anti-Jewish incidents took place on college campuses, compared with only 12 incidents in the same period last year.

Deena Yellin covers religion for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to her work covering how the spiritual intersects with our daily lives, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: yellin@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Rutgers donors suspend donations, citing antisemitism on campus