Steven Spielberg's Righteous Persons Foundation, founded with $100 million in Schindler's List profits, has steered approximately $3 million since 2020 to Jewish groups that helped elect a terror supporter as Mayor of New York City — and oppose the international definition of antisemitism.
Righteous Persons Foundation: At a Glance
| Foundation | Righteous Persons Foundation |
| Founded | 1994, with $100 million in Schindler's List profits |
| Chairman | Steven Spielberg |
| Executive Director | Margery Tabankin (since October 1, 1994) |
| EIN | 95-4497916 |
| Total disbursements (1994 to 2024) | $160+ million |
| 2024 grantmaking | ~$8.9 million across ~30 grants |
| Revenue (2024 990-PF) | $9.31 million |
| Named after | The gentile rescuers of Holocaust survivors |
| Tax filings | ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer |
Core Four grantees: $3 million since 2020
| Organization | Amount (2020 to 2024) | Position on IHRA | Key activity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bend the Arc | $1,200,000 | Opposes IHRA definition | First-ever mayoral endorsement: Zohran Mamdani (Sept 2025). 501(c)(4) chaired by Alex Soros. |
| Jews United for Justice | $925,000 | Opposes IHRA definition | Signed letters calling for Jewish institutions to be "held accountable" for Palestinian conditions |
| T'ruah | $690,000 | N/A | Street blockades against Israeli military operations. CEO Rabbi Jill Jacobs: "war crimes" |
| Jewish Social Justice Roundtable | $250,000 | N/A | Umbrella coalition coordinating messaging and legislative strategy across the network |
| Total | ~$3,065,000 | Source: IRS Form 990-PF filings, FY2020 to 2024 | |
Broader ecosystem grantees
| Organization | Domain | Function in ecosystem |
|---|---|---|
| Union for Reform Judaism (RAC) | Religious infrastructure | Denominational legitimacy plus legislative advocacy in Washington |
| Dayenu | Climate justice | Frames climate activism as Jewish moral imperative (tikkun olam) |
| Poor People's Campaign | Multi-faith economic justice | Cross-faith progressive coalition; situates Jewish activism within broader movement |
| Repair the World | Community organizing | Mobilizes Jewish young adults for service/social justice organizing |
| New York Jewish Agenda | Political mobilization | Progressive coalition hub; co-founded by Rachel Timoner (Schumer advisor) |
| Reboot | Cultural narrative | Reimagines Jewish identity around progressive values |
| Jewish Story Partners | Film / narrative | $1M RPF lead gift (2021); 101 film projects funded with $3M total |
Sources: IRS Form 990-PF filings (EIN 95-4497916) via ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer; GrantStation; Righteous Persons Foundation grants archive; Influence Watch.
SPIELBERG'S $100M CHOICE
In the fall of 1994, fresh off the Best Picture and Best Director wins for Schindler's List, Steven Spielberg made a vow.
He told his mentor Sid Sheinberg that he could not accept a dollar of the film's profits personally. "It was blood money," Spielberg said, "and needed to be put back into the Jewish community."1 He committed $100 million to launch what he called the Righteous Persons Foundation, named, with intention, after the gentile rescuers of Holocaust survivors.
On October 1, 1994, less than two months after the Oscars, Spielberg and his board made their founding strategic decision. They appointed Margery Tabankin as Executive Director, a choice that set the foundation's direction for the next three decades.2
This appointment was deliberate. It was not a staffing default. Spielberg and his board reviewed Tabankin's 20-year track record: VISTA National Director under Jimmy Carter ($60M budget, 5,000 staff),3 Arca Foundation Executive Director (progressive grantmaking strategy), West Bank travel and Palestinian leadership engagement,4 Hollywood political infrastructure, and selected her to shape $100 million in Schindler's List profits. They knew exactly what they were doing. For more than three decades, Tabankin has shaped every grant decision, every organizational priority, every strategic disbursement, reporting directly to Spielberg as Chairman. The board has no independent directors. There is no outside oversight. Tabankin's strategy is the board's strategy, because they designed it that way.
THE NETWORK THAT ELECTED MAMDANI
In September 2025, Bend the Arc gave its first-ever mayoral endorsement to Zohran Mamdani, the New York State Assemblyman from Queens running for Mayor of New York City. The endorsement decision was made inside Bend the Arc's 501(c)(4) political arm, chaired by Alex Soros.
He won the November 2025 election. He was inaugurated on New Year's Day 2026. He is now the Mayor of New York City, the city with the largest Jewish population outside the State of Israel.
Bend the Arc raised money for him. Bend the Arc canvassed for him. Bend the Arc bought television advertising for him. In its own post-election communications, the organization claimed credit for shaping the result: "With support from people like you, Bend the Arc helped shape this monumental victory with our air game and ground game."
The money that paid for Bend the Arc's air game and ground game came from a portfolio that includes, substantially and repeatedly, on the public record, the Righteous Persons Foundation and the Soros family. Steven Spielberg's charity wrote checks to the organization that delivered Mamdani to the people of New York. Alex Soros, through the Alexander Soros Foundation and his chairmanship of Bend the Arc's political arm, did not write a campaign check. He chaired the political machinery that delivered the outcome.
THE BROADER ECOSYSTEM: SPIELBERG'S WIDER INFRASTRUCTURE FOR JEWISH PROGRESSIVE ACTIVISM
Beyond these four primary recipients, the Righteous Persons Foundation's grantmaking extends across a broader ecosystem of Jewish progressive institutions operating at the intersection of climate justice, institutional religious leadership, multi-faith economic activism, community organizing, and cultural narrative-setting.
The foundation makes approximately 30 grants annually, totaling $8.9 million in 2024.6 The breadth of this grantee network, spanning institutional religious infrastructure (Union for Reform Judaism), single-issue climate activism (Dayenu), multi-faith economic justice (Poor People's Campaign), community organizing (Repair the World), political mobilization (New York Jewish Agenda), and cultural narrative production (Reboot, Jewish Story Partners), indicates a coordinated strategy for building Jewish progressive power across multiple domains simultaneously.
Together, they constitute an ecosystem in which Jewish institutions at every level, religious, political, cultural, grassroots, have been aligned with a consistent set of progressive policy positions through sustained funding and strategic guidance from a single source: the Righteous Persons Foundation, under the direction of Margery Tabankin, with the knowledge and approval of Steven Spielberg and his board.
This is not incidental grantmaking. This is architectural philanthropy.
MEETING WITH THE MAYOR AT CENTRAL PARK WEST
On Monday, January 5, 2026, the first day of Mamdani's first full week as Mayor of New York City, Steven Spielberg hosted the new mayor at the director's apartment on Central Park West.
The meeting was first reported by the New York Times and confirmed by Mamdani's City Hall and by Spielberg's spokeswoman, Terry Press. Spielberg's wife Kate Capshaw, their son Theo Spielberg, and Theo's wife were present. Mamdani brought his advisor Morris Katz.
MARGERY TABANKIN: THIRTY YEARS SHAPING SPIELBERG'S FOUNDATION STRATEGY
| Role | Executive Director, Righteous Persons Foundation (since Oct 1, 1994) |
| Prior: VISTA | National Director under Jimmy Carter (1977 to 1981); $60M budget, 5,000 staff |
| Prior: Arca Foundation | Executive Director; progressive grantmaking strategy |
| Middle East engagement | West Bank travel and Palestinian leadership meetings during Arca tenure (1981 to 1988) |
| Hollywood infrastructure | Hollywood Women's Political Committee leadership |
| Tenure | 30+ consecutive years. Reports directly to Spielberg as Chairman. |
SPIELBERG FOUNDATION GRANTMAKING: FAQ
What is Steven Spielberg's charity?
Steven Spielberg's primary charity is the Righteous Persons Foundation, launched in 1994 with $100 million in profits from Schindler's List. In October 1994, Spielberg and his board appointed Margery Tabankin as Executive Director. Tabankin has shaped the foundation's strategic direction for more than three decades. The foundation has paid out more than $160 million in grants9 and is separate from the USC Shoah Foundation, which Spielberg founded in 1994 to collect Holocaust survivor testimony.
How much has Spielberg's foundation given to organizations critical of Israeli policy?
Approximately $3 million since 2020, according to the foundation's own tax filings. Recipients include Bend the Arc ($1.2 million), Jews United for Justice ($925,000), T'ruah ($690,000), and Jewish Social Justice Roundtable ($250,000).
Did Steven Spielberg and Alex Soros support Zohran Mamdani?
Spielberg's foundation gave $1.2 million to Bend the Arc, the Jewish advocacy group that delivered Mamdani's first-ever mayoral endorsement. Soros's foundation gave $250K+ to Bend the Arc and Alex Soros chaired the organization's 501(c)(4) political arm that ran the campaign. Spielberg hosted Mamdani at his Central Park West apartment on January 5, 2026. For the full picture of that meeting and what led to it, see Olam's coverage of the Spielberg-Mamdani relationship.
Where did Schindler's List profits go?
The $100 million in Schindler's List profits went into the Righteous Persons Foundation in 1994. Since 2020, an increasingly significant share has gone to Jewish progressive organizations engaged in Palestinian advocacy work, climate justice activism, multi-faith economic justice coalitions, and cultural narrative-production aimed at constructing a progressive Jewish identity.
TAX FILINGS & SOURCE DOCUMENTATION
- ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer (Full 990-PF filings 2011 to 2024): https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/954497916
- 2024 Form 990-PF (filed Nov 14, 2025): View full filing. Revenue $9.31M, Expenses $9.35M, Charitable Disbursements $9.35M
- 2023 Form 990-PF (filed Nov 15, 2024): View full filing. Revenue $4.03M, Expenses $4.07M, Charitable Disbursements $4.06M
- IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search: EIN: 95-4497916
- GrantStation: Grantee-level detail from 990 schedules
- Righteous Persons Foundation Grants Archive: righteouspersons.org/grants-archive
Related Olam Coverage
- Spielberg, Mamdani, and the Politics of a Central Park West Meeting
- UJA-Federation Gave $280,000 to Organizations That Endorsed Mamdani
- Conference of Presidents Political Audit: 62% Oppose Trump and Netanyahu
- The Other Spielberg Foundation: Hearthland Voter Mobilization
FOOTNOTES
1 Spielberg's "blood money" quote cited in multiple sources including JTA archive coverage and subsequent interviews.
2 Margery Tabankin appointment confirmed in foundation founding documents. Official start: October 1, 1994.
3 Tabankin's VISTA tenure: National Director, 1977 to 1981, under President Carter.
4 Tabankin's West Bank engagement documented in biographical materials related to her Arca Foundation tenure (1981 to 1988).
5 All grant figures extracted from IRS Form 990-PF filings (EIN 95-4497916) for fiscal years 2020 to 2024.
6 2024 grantmaking total of $8.9 million derived from Form 990-PF filing for FY2024 (filed November 14, 2025).
9 Foundation total disbursements of $160+ million since 1994 derived from cumulative 990-PF analysis.
Last reviewed: August 2026.