Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman said on Friday that the U.S. needs to reexamine allowing foreign contributions to U.S. universities in light of the recent pro-Hamas protests that sprung up on campuses across the country.
His comments come as illegal encampments popped up on major college campuses in what numerous law enforcement entities have said was a coordinated movement by outside agitators who were not connected to the universities.
Despite professional outside agitators being a significant source of the mayhem, university leaders were largely weak in quelling the uprisings on their campuses — as exemplified by Columbia University where extremists managed to take over an entire building.
“Foreign governments are not allowed to own our radio and TV stations for fear they might be used for anti-American propaganda and influence,” Ackman posted on X. “The Congress just banned TikTok for the same reason.”
Foreign governments are not allowed to own our radio and TV stations for fear they might be used for anti-American propaganda and influence. The Congress just banned TikTok for the same reason.
Why then do we allow foreign governments to give money to our universities, funds… https://t.co/5CA0N7lDl9
— Bill Ackman (@BillAckman) May 3, 2024
“Why then do we allow foreign governments to give money to our universities, funds that are used to set up Middle Eastern, Asian studies and other programs which can be designed to fit the desired narratives of the donors?” he asked.
Ackman said that will students should learn more about the Middle East and Asia, it was a “big mistake” to have these programs “funded, influenced, and sometimes designed by foreign governments” who are U.S. adversaries.
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“Our universities have a profound impact on our younger generation at a time when they are particularly vulnerable to being manipulated, that is, away from home for the first time, and young and naive,” he continued. “Notably, these foreign governments concentrate their ‘gifts’ to our most elite institutions where they can influence our next generation of leaders — judges, politicians, members of the media and more. Based on recent events on campus, this seems to have been a bad strategy for America. We need to rethink this.”