Heather Mnuchin

Press Release

After community pushback, City Harvest takes no donations from Israeli settlement-builder Leviev

MEDIA CONTACT: info@adalahny.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New York, NY, February 19, 2014 – Adalah-NY announced today that contrary to 2012 media reports touting Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev’s support for the New York City anti-hunger nonprofit City Harvest, the organization received no support of any kind from Leviev during that period. In November 2012, after media reported on Leviev’s support for City Harvest fundraisers, Adalah-NY mobilized letters from organizations and from over 600 individuals calling on the award-winning organization to reject funds from and publicly disavow Leviev due to his companies’ construction of Israeli settlements in violation of international law, and unethical business practices in the diamond industry in Southern Africa.

City Harvest’s just-issued 2013 annual report, and their 2012 annual report both show no support from Leviev. City Harvest spokesperson Cara Taback confirmed in a February 18 phone call with Adalah-NY that the annual reports provide a full and accurate list of all the organization’s donors, and that Leviev indeed had not been a City Harvest donor during the July 2011 – June 2013 period covered by the two reports.

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Press Release

New York’s City Harvest in ethics bind over links to Israeli settlement-builder Leviev

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New York, NY – The award-winning New York City anti-hunger nonprofit City Harvest is avoiding requests to distance itself from funding and support from controversial Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev, despite over 500 letters to the organization complaining about Leviev’s human rights record. Leviev’s companies have built thousands of Israeli settlement homes on occupied Palestinian land in violation of international law, and have also been accused of involvement in human rights abuses and unethical business practices in the diamond industry in Angola and Namibia, and now possibly in Zimbabwe as well.

The governments of Norway and the United Kingdom, Oxfam America, UNICEF, CARE, and Hollywood stars have all sought distance from Leviev or his companies over their human rights record. Most recently, in December, New Zealand’s Superannuation Fund, which invests $20 billion for New Zealand’s government, announced it had divested from Leviev’s companies Africa Israel and its subsidiary Danya Cebus.

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