The 33-year-old Gelman is listed on the fund’s publicly available Form 990 for 2019 as the foundation’s manager, contributing to it $1,300,000.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
MAY 30, 2024 19:19
Updated: MAY 30, 2024 19:23
A person stands watch at an entrance to the encampment on the university grounds as protests continue at Columbia University, during the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, in New York City, US, April 25, 2024.
(photo credit: REUTERS/DAVID ‘DEE’ DELGADO)
The Bafrayung Fund, headed by Raichel Gelman, has been found to be one of the main financial backers of the Westchester Peace Action Committee (WESPAC), which supports anti-Israel groups across US campuses, according to a recent report published by the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism & Policy (ISGAP).
Rachel Gelman, head of the the Bafrayung Fund, is the daughter of Susie Gelman, who has chaired the Israel Policy Forum in the past and was once considered by US President Joe Biden as a candidate to be ambassador to Israel.
WESPAC is an organization which grants financial support to The National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP), the umbrella organization of the Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and one of main promotors of the anti-Israel campus protests which started in the US earlier this year, and spread to campuses around the world.
The 33-year-old Gelman is listed on the fund’s publicly available Form 990 for 2019 as the foundation’s manager, contributing to it $1,300,000. According to various reports, her parents are donors to the Democratic Party and have long been advocates of American-Israeli relations. Via their Morningstar Foundation, they have reportedly supported Birthright and the Israel Policy Forum.
Interestingly, the Morningstar foundation is listed in Form 990 as second contributor to Gelman’s Bafrayung Fund.
WESPAC main financial supporter of NJSP
A DEMONSTRATOR holds a placard as Columbia University students protest outside offices of University Trustees, in New York City, earlier this month. (credit: BRENDAN MCDERMID/REUTERS)
According to the ISGAP report, WESPAC, the main financial supporter of NSJP, has close links to both pro-Hamas organizations and individuals. It provides the NSJP/SJP with tax-exempt funding without revealing its financial sources or how much backing it grants the NSJP. This allows the NSJP to further its objectives on campuses while remaining financially unaccountable.
The report offered a detailed list of the grants WESPAC has recieved both in origines and amounts. It showed one of WESPAC chief sponsors to be the Bafrayung Fund, with an amount totalling $300.000.
ISGAP also showed that donations to NSJP have been transferred to WESPAC.
In addition to NSJP, WESPAC is a financial backer of US Palestinian Community Network (USPCN), Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), Adalah New York, International Jewish Anti-Zionist Network (IJAN) and Palestine Freedom Project (PFP).
Michael Starr contributed to this report.
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