Hedge fund billionaire Leon Cooperman suspends Columbia University donations over pro-Palestine protests

Hedge fund billionaire and Columbia University graduate Leon Cooperman said that he would suspend his donations to the college, over pro-Palestinian protests by university students and professors, unless he saw a change. Hedge fund billionaire and Columbia University graduate Leon Cooperman 80-year-old Cooperman said that he believed the students protesting against Israel have “s**t for brains”. I’ll give it to other organisations.” When the interviewer asked if he meant he would not donate any more money to Columbia, Cooperman, having a worth of about $2.8 billion, responded, “Yeah, unless I see a change.” This comes as the Modern Arab Politics and Intellectual History professor at Columbia, Joseph Massad, called the Hamas' attack on Israel “awesome”. The petition said, “Regardless of one’s stance on the conflict, supporting and praising one of the worst acts of terrorism in history is never acceptable.” A letter supporting Massad, signed by thousands of school's alumni, staff and student body, has also been issued condemning the petition and it calls upon Columbia University's President Nemat Shafik to “unequivocally guarantee his physical safety and his academic freedom”.