The Wexner Foundation becomes the latest donor to withdraw support from Harvard University over Hamas attacks on Israel.
The foundation’s wealth comes from retailers Victoria’s Secret and L Brands, the former parent company of Bath & Body Works.
The charity, chaired by Leslie Wexner and Abigail Wexner, said in a letter to Harvard’s Board of Overseers on Monday that it would end its relationship with the institution. “Finance and Project Relations” of the University. The foundation supports up to 10 government and public service professionals from Israel each year to pursue one-year degrees at the Harvard Kennedy School.
“We take clear and unequivocal action against Harvard leadership in response to the brutal murder of innocent Israeli civilians by terrorists this past Saturday, Shabbat, and holiday,” the foundation wrote in a letter signed by Harvard University leadership. “We are shocked and disgusted by the position.” Wexners, Chairman Rabbi B. Elka Abrahamson and Director General Ra’anan Avital.
Harvard University President Claudine Gay, who took office in July, has been trying to appease some critics, initially including former university president Larry Summers. Summers said he was angered by Harvard’s initial silence after more than 30 student groups issued statements blaming the violence solely on Israel, rather than Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.
The Wexner Foundation letter describes a relationship that goes back decades.One of the buildings at Kennedy College is named Leslie Wexner donated funds for its construction.
Harvard University had no immediate comment.
As Hamas attacks Israel, killing at least 1,400 Israelis, several U.S. university donors and alumni have been lending support to the institutions’ response. Israeli businessman Idan Ofer and his wife resigned from the Kennedy School Board of Trustees last week.
Another Ivy League school, Penn State, dismissed accusations of anti-Semitism brought by donor, alumnus and Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, who called for the resignation of two of the company’s leaders. A Penn State trustee also resigned over the weekend.Jon Huntsman, former Utah governor and U.S. ambassador to China and Russia, said in a statement that he Stop donating He told his alma mater, Penn State, that the university was “changed beyond recognition,” according to the student newspaper The Daily Penn.
Leslie Wexner, 86, the founder of L Brands (which once included Victoria’s Secret), has a net worth of $9.8 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The lingerie chain parted ways with Wexner in 2021 after the company came under scrutiny for its past business ties to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who is awaiting jail time on other charges. Death at trial.
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