Part of the funding report for WESPAC
According to a report in The Daily Beast, the Bafrayung Fund, based in Covina, California, is one of the largest supporters of the Palestinian Youth Movement, which played a major role in the pro-Palestinian protests in U.S. colleges this year. The Fund has also contributed substantially to two of the Palestinian Youth Movement's allies: the Arab Resource and Organizing Center and Critical Resistance.
Behind the Bafrayung Fund is Rachel Gelman, from the family that founded the Levi Strauss company. The money for the Bafrayung Fund comes from just two sources: Gelman herself, and the Morningstar Philanthropic Foundation, the personal charity of her parents, who have long been active in organizations promoting American-Israeli relations.
Rachel Gelman's great=grandfather was Walter Haas, the businessman who built up Levi Strauss from a small San Francisco wholesaler into a global denim brand.
the Gelmans have simultaneously bankrolled the Bafrayung Fund, their daughter Rachel's charity, pouring in $3,470,000 between 2019 and 2022, the last year for which disclosures are available, all from Morningstar Philanthropic, the same outfit through which the Gelmans support Birthright and the Israel Policy Forum.
Bafrayung has disbursed money to a wide range of left-wing causes, including those tied to pro-Palestinian and anti-Israeli activism. That includes $60,000 for the Palestinian Youth Movement, doled out in annual earmarked tranches to the group's sponsor WESPAC, and $40,000 for the Arab Resource and Organizing Center.
The Palestinian Youth Movement extensively chronicled its involvement in the proliferating campus encampments this spring, including the flagship protest at Columbia University.
The Bafrayung Fund has also given $298,000 to Critical Resistance, which recently has participated in multiple pro-Palestinian events in conjunction with the Palestinian Youth Movement and AROC, including protests that temporarily paralyzed San Francisco Airport, the Bay Bridge, and the Port of Oakland.
Rachel Gelman, has also donated thousands to two of the most left-wing anti-Israel congressmen: Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY) and Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), both Israel critics.
According to an electronically filed Form 990 report, Total 501(c) funding for WESPAC (an umbrella organization that supports Palestinian causes and obscures the sources of the support) the Bafrayung Fund was the largest supporter of WESPAC in 2022 with a donation of $300,000.
