Barry Sternlicht, a real estate entrepreneur and top donor to Brown University, has announced that he is withdrawing financial support from the institution due to its willingness to discuss joining an academic boycott of Israel. This decision comes at a time when The University of Rhode Island has become the first higher education institution in the United States to consider such a boycott.
The board of governors at the University of Rhode Island will meet in June to make the final decision on whether or not to implement an academic boycott of Israel. Meanwhile, Christina Paxson, president of Brown University, stated that the decision was made as part of an agreement reached with students who had encamped on campus in protest.
Barry Sternlicht, whose fortune exceeds three billion dollars, expressed his displeasure with the decision as unconscionable. He believes that when people ignore facts, there should be no discussion. He views the decision as propaganda rather than education and expressed disappointment in the university’s stance on the issue.
