Billionaire investor Kenneth Griffin called on his alma mater Harvard University to embrace “Western values” on Saturday (May 11), referring to campus unrest as a product of the “cultural revolution” in American education.
Griffin, 55, is the founder of Citadel, one of the world’s largest hedge funds. In an interview with the Financial Times, he stated that over the past decade, the United States has “neglected education as a means of pursuing truth and acquiring knowledge.”
According to the financial tycoon, “Harvard should prioritize the system representing the best of America and educate the next generation of leaders in American business, government, healthcare, and philanthropy.” He added that schools should “embrace Western values, which have built one of the greatest nations in the world, cultivate these values with students, and require them to embody these values throughout their lives.”
Griffin, a Harvard University graduate, has donated over $500 million to his alma mater, making him one of Harvard’s largest benefactors. He is one of the wealthiest people in the world and the most profitable hedge fund manager in history.
In January, he announced that he had stopped donating to Harvard due to the university’s handling of campus anti-Semitism until Harvard made changes. He also criticized elite schools for fostering “complaining snowflakes” (referring to those who inexplicably believe they are unique and deserve special treatment).
The billionaire reiterated that he would not hire students who signed a joint statement against Israel last October.
Several universities, including Harvard, Stanford, and MIT, have experienced protests against the Israeli Gaza war, sometimes escalating to violent demonstrations, with conflicts between wealthy donors and protesting students occurring at times.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Griffin stated, “What you are witnessing now is the final product of the cultural revolution in the American education sector, especially using the mindset of oppressors and oppressed.” He added, “Protest activities on college campuses are almost like farce… Freedom of speech does not give you the right to vandalize or destroy buildings.”
The Citadel founder drew parallels between the US campus protest activities and the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. The peak of the BLM racist protest activities in 2020 led to various riots and violent events.
“This is not freedom of speech. This is just anarchy,” he continued, “In reality, we haven’t helped Palestinians or Israelis through these surreal protest activities.”
According to Reuters, dozens of pro-Palestinian individuals were arrested during campus demonstrations across the United States while demanding a ceasefire in Gaza from Israel and urging their schools to divest from companies linked to Israel.
The non-profit news agency The Appeal reported that since the first large-scale arrest at Columbia University on April 18, over 2,600 protesters have been detained in more than 100 protest events in 39 states and the District of Columbia.
Griffin began his business career in a Harvard University dormitory and at the Managed Funds Association (MFA) conference in Miami in January, he criticized the education at America’s elite universities and denounced the “DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) agenda.”