UJA-Federation distributed $275.8M in FY2025. $180K went to Bend the Arc, $50K to T'ruah, $50K to a grant described as "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign." The grants book is public.
UJA-Federation Gave $280,000 to Organizations That Endorsed Mamdani, Oppose the IHRA Definition, and Fight Israel's Defenders
$180,000 for Bend the Arc. $50,000 for T'ruah. $50,000 for a grant described in UJA's own grants book as "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign." The grants and dollar amounts come from UJA's published records.
UJA-Federation of New York distributed $275.8 million in fiscal year 2025. I read the entire grants book. Every line item. Every dollar. Every grantee name.
The controversial grants identified here total approximately $280,000 — roughly 0.10% of the $275.8 million grants book. Critics will say that's a rounding error. It is not. The question is not how much money, but who receives it. And what those organizations do with the credibility that a UJA grant confers.
UJA-Federation Gave $180,000 to Bend the Arc — the Organization That Endorsed Zohran Mamdani
Two grants: $110,000 for "Jewish Social Justice Capacity-Building Grants" and $70,000 for "Jewish Social Justice Roundtable NY Regional Program." Those are capacity-building and roundtable grants — not earmarked for political campaigns.
But UJA funded an organization that also did the following: endorsed Zohran Mamdani for mayor — its first mayoral endorsement in 25 years. Opposes the IHRA definition of antisemitism. Co-organized the "largest ever gathering of Jewish clergy protesting ICE." Mobilized 1.5 million voter contacts in the 2024 election cycle to, in its own words, "demonstrate American Jewish opposition to the MAGA movement."
Alexander Soros is the founding chair of Bend the Arc Jewish Action, the organization's 501(c)(4) political arm. Its funders include Ford Foundation, Open Society Foundations, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Kresge Foundation, and the Freedom Together Foundation.
UJA-Federation Gave $50,000 to T'ruah — Whose Director Called Israel's Gaza Operations "War Crimes"
The UJA grant is labeled "Fighting Antisemitism." T'ruah's executive director, Rabbi Jill Jacobs, has called Israel's military operations in Gaza "war crimes," accused Israel of "deliberately starving" Palestinian civilians, and claimed wealthy Jewish donors use "fear" to suppress discussion of Palestinian casualties.
T'ruah co-organized the anti-ICE protests with Bend the Arc. It receives funding from the Ford Foundation, the New Israel Fund, and the Walter & Elise Haas Fund. UJA funded an organization whose leader publicly accuses Israel of war crimes — under a grant labeled "Fighting Antisemitism."
Spielberg's Foundation Also Funded Bend the Arc and T'ruah
UJA is not the only major Jewish funder writing checks to these two organizations. Steven Spielberg's Righteous Persons Foundation directed $1.2 million to Bend the Arc and $690,000 to T'ruah between 2020 and 2024, according to Olam's investigation into the Spielberg-Mamdani funding network. Combined with Alex Soros's $1.28 million-plus to Bend the Arc through the Alexander Soros Foundation and Open Society Foundations, the same two organizations UJA funded sit inside a documented, multi-funder network that built the infrastructure behind Mamdani's endorsement.
UJA-Federation Gave $50,000 to Jewish Majority — for a Grant Described as "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign"
The UJA grants book describes this $50,000 grant's purpose, verbatim, as: "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign: Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ)."
That language raises a question UJA's donors deserve an answer to: what does "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign" mean in this context? Is it a program name? A categorization? A funding stream connected to the organization the ADL lists among the top ten anti-Israel groups in the United States? As of publication, Olam has asked UJA-Federation to clarify the designation. We have not received a response.
UJA Spent $97.3 Million on Israel Emergency Support — and $280,000 on Organizations Whose Positions Conflict with That Mission
In the same fiscal year, UJA allocated $97.3 million for Emergency Support for Israel, $13 million to confront antisemitism, $3 million for AI-enhanced CCTV to protect Jewish institutions in Brooklyn, and $2.45 million to Birthright Israel. Good. Necessary. Essential.
And then UJA funded organizations whose public positions conflict with what most UJA donors likely assume their money supports. Organizations that oppose the definition of antisemitism adopted by 43 countries. That endorsed the mayor who surrounds himself with anti-Israel activists. That brand themselves the "Jewish Resistance."
UJA's donors gave $316.1 million in fiscal year 2025 because they believe they are funding Jewish security, Jewish education, and support for Israel. Do those donors know their money also goes to Bend the Arc? To T'ruah? To a grant described as a "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign"?
Separately: UJA Gave $1 Million for Gaza Humanitarian Aid While Maintaining Its Green Line Funding Restriction
In August 2025, UJA-Federation announced a $1 million grant to IsraAID for humanitarian aid to Gaza — food, medicine, and water filtration systems for displaced Palestinians. CEO Eric Goldstein framed it as a "Jewish imperative." This is a conceptually different issue from the grants above. Humanitarian aid to civilians is not the same as funding advocacy organizations whose positions undermine Israel's defenders.
But it raises a separate question. The Jewish Federations of North America's stated policy is that it does not "allocate funds for capital investments beyond the Green Line." UJA-Federation of New York has been described in reporting as "long resistant to funding or sending missions across the Green Line." As of publication, Olam has asked UJA-Federation whether it currently funds any programs or organizations operating in Judea and Samaria. We have not received a response.
I am pointing out facts: $1 million for Gaza. $180,000 for Bend the Arc. $50,000 for T'ruah. $50,000 for a grant described as a "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign." These are choices. They are deliberate. And they tell you who UJA-Federation thinks it serves.
Five Questions Olam Submitted to UJA-Federation of New York
Olam submitted the following questions to UJA-Federation of New York prior to publication. As of publication, UJA has not responded.
1. What does the grant-book designation "Jewish Voice for Peace Campaign: Jews for Racial and Economic Justice (JFREJ)" describe? Is this a program name, a funding stream, or a campaign connected to the organization known as Jewish Voice for Peace?
2. Does UJA-Federation currently fund any programs, organizations, or capital projects operating in Judea and Samaria (beyond the Green Line)?
3. What due diligence does UJA conduct on grantees' public advocacy positions — including positions on IHRA, political endorsements, and protest activity — before awarding grants?
4. Is UJA aware that Bend the Arc endorsed Zohran Mamdani, opposes the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and co-organized protests defending Mahmoud Khalil? Does UJA consider these positions consistent with its mission?
5. Does UJA plan to continue funding Bend the Arc, T'ruah, and Jewish Majority in fiscal year 2026?
If UJA responds, Olam will publish their answers in full.
UJA-Federation is the largest local Jewish philanthropy in the world. It has a $1.2 billion endowment. Its chair is Marc Rowan. Its CEO is Eric Goldstein. They have the resources, the staff, and the institutional knowledge to know exactly who they are funding and what those organizations do.
Their donors deserve to know it too.
Sources
1. UJA-Federation of New York, Report of 2024-2025 Grants Awarded. All grant amounts and descriptions cited in this article are drawn verbatim from this document.
2. Bend the Arc: Jewish Action, official position on IHRA definition.
3. Alexander Soros identified as Founding Chair of Bend the Arc Jewish Action per Gordon Parks Foundation, InfluenceWatch, and JTA reporting.
4. JFNA Green Line policy quoted in The Intercept, November 2, 2023.
5. UJA-Federation described as "long resistant to funding or sending missions across the Green Line" per JTA, June 14, 2002.
8. JTA, "Rabbis arrested during Jewish-led anti-ICE protest in NYC," May 1, 2026.
9. GrantedAI.com, Bend the Arc foundation grants record (IRS 990-PF filings).
10. Cooper, Sean. "Bending the Jews." Tablet Magazine, May 27, 2020.