CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS: Hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman stirred controversy by claiming that multiple CEOs had approached him, expressing interest in obtaining the names of Harvard University students associated with groups that signed a letter critical of Israel's role in the recent Hamas attacks.
The post ignited a heated debate on the transparency of such requests and the potential consequences for these students.
Bill Ackman faces backlash
"I have been asked by a number of CEOs if Harvard would release a list of the members of each of the Harvard organizations that have issued the letter assigning sole responsibility for Hamas' heinous acts to Israel, so as to ensure that none of us inadvertently hire any of their members," Ackman wrote on his X social media account on Tuesday, October 10.
Ackman, a Harvard alumnus with a net worth of $3.5 billion, didn't stop there. "If, in fact, their members support the letter they have released, the names of the signatories should be made public so their views are publicly known," he insisted.
“One should not be able to hide behind a corporate shield when issuing statements supporting the actions of terrorists, who, we now learn, have beheaded babies, among other inconceivably despicable acts," Ackman added.
However, the announcement didn't sit well with everyone, particularly on social media.
Responding to Ackman's post, one user remarked, "You should make the names of the CEOs public that have agreed with you not to hire people that you are referring to. That would be interesting."
Another inquired, "Can you provide a list of these CEOs?" Yet another user was more skeptical, writing, "Oh, a list you say? what could go wrong?"
The situation was further complicated by Bill Ackman's personal connection to the controversy. According to the New York Post, Ackman is married to Neri Oxman, an Israeli-born professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, which could potentially influence his stance on the matter.
Ackman's remarks came hot on the heels of another prominent Harvard alumnus, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, who publicly chastised the university's administrators.
Larry Summers' critique
Summers criticized them for not explicitly condemning Hamas, further fanning the flames of the ongoing debate. "The delayed @Harvard leadership statement fails to meet the needs of the moment," Summers, the Harvard-trained economist, stated on his X social media account on Tuesday.
“Why can’t we find anything approaching the moral clarity of Harvard statements after George Floyd’s death or Russia’s invasion of Ukraine when terrorists kill, rape, and take hostage hundreds of Israelis attending a music festival?” he asked.
Summers called on Harvard administrators to denounce the statement issued by a coalition of 35 student organizations. The groups had attributed blame to Israel for the Hamas assault that took place on a Saturday morning, a series of events that resulted in the tragic loss of at least 1,000 Israeli lives.
“Why can’t we give reassurance that the University stands squarely against Hamas terror to frightened students when 35 groups of their fellow students appear to be blaming all the violence on Israel?” he wrote on Monday, October 9.
This came after Harvard administrators wrote in their Monday statement, “We write to you today heartbroken by the death and destruction unleashed by the attack by Hamas that targeted citizens in Israel this weekend, and by the war in Israel and Gaza now underway."
Summers criticized the university's failure to reassure frightened students in the face of these allegations. With 35 groups of their fellow students seemingly blaming all the violence on Israel, he argued that Harvard should stand unequivocally against Hamas terror.
In response to the growing controversy, Harvard University President Claudine Gay published a follow-up statement on Tuesday, writing, “As the events of recent days continue to reverberate, let there be no doubt that I condemn the terrorist atrocities perpetrated by Hamas."
