Foundation for Ethnic understanding - Revision history

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{{short description|'''New York interfaith organisation working on Black–Jewish and Muslim–Jewish relations'''}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Foundation for Ethnic Understanding
| abbreviation = FFEU
| formation = 1989
| founder = [[Marc Schneier]]<br />[[Joseph Papp]]
| type = [[501(c)(3)]] public charity
| tax_id = 13-3527874
| purpose = Interethnic and interfaith dialogue; Black–Jewish and Muslim–Jewish programmes
| headquarters = New York City, United States
| location = 1 East 93rd Street, Suite 1C, New York, NY 10128
| leader_title = President
| leader_name = [[Marc Schneier]]
| revenue = US$1,378,933 (year ending December 2024)
| expenses = US$1,345,715 (year ending December 2024)
| staff = 3 (2024)
| website = https://www.ffeu.org/
}}

The '''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding''' ('''FFEU''') is a New York-based [[501(c)(3)]] organisation founded in 1989 by Rabbi [[Marc Schneier]] and theatrical producer [[Joseph Papp]].<ref name="FFEUMission">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/about-us/our-mission/ Our Mission] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref><ref name="GuideStar">GuideStar, [https://www.guidestar.org/profile/13-3527874 Foundation for Ethnic Understanding] ''GuideStar'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref> It presents itself as "the national address for Black–Jewish relations" and "the global address for Muslim–Jewish relations".<ref name="FFEUHome">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/ Foundation For Ethnic Understanding] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref> From 2007 it built a Muslim–Jewish programme of clergy summits, mosque–synagogue twinning and Gulf-state contacts which [[Marc Schneier]] and the organisation later described as having "planted the seeds" for the [[Abraham Accords]].<ref name="FFEUMission" /><ref name="ArabNews2019">Ray Hanania, [https://www.ffeu.org/2019/06/american-rabbi-with-close-ties-to-gulf-sees-economics-as-the-foundation-for-peace/ American rabbi with close ties to Gulf sees economics as the foundation for peace] ''Arab News'' / [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], 25 June 2019.</ref>

==History==

The [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] was created in 1989, according to its own account, as "a dream of Rabbi [[Marc Schneier]] and the late [[Joseph Papp]] committed to the belief that direct, face-to-face dialogue between ethnic communities is the most effective path towards the reduction of bigotry".<ref name="FFEUTimeline">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/our-impact/timeline/1989-2000/ 1989-2000] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref> [[Joseph Papp]] died in 1991. The group obtained US federal tax-exempt status in October 1990 (EIN 13-3527874).<ref name="ProPublica">ProPublica, [https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/133527874 Foundation For Ethnic Understanding] ''Nonprofit Explorer'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref>

Early work concentrated on relations between African American and Jewish communities in the United States. In 1995 [[Marc Schneier]] hosted [[Coretta Scott King]] in New York on [[Martin Luther King Jr. Day]] weekend to address leaders of national Jewish organisations.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" /> In June 1996, during a wave of arson attacks on Black churches in the US South, the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] and the [[New York Board of Rabbis]] established a fund to help rebuild Matthews Murkland Presbyterian Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. [[Marc Schneier]] said it was "very, very important that the Jewish community not be so arrogant and naive to think that this could not happen to synagogues" and that Jews should be "rallying together with our brothers and sisters in the South".<ref name="JTA1996">Jewish Telegraphic Agency, [https://www.jta.org/archive/jewish-groups-launch-efforts-to-help-burned-black-churches Jewish Groups Launch Efforts to Help Burned Black Churches] ''Jewish Telegraphic Agency'', 20 June 1996.</ref>

The organisation published a ''New York Directory of Interethnic Activity'' in 1996 and, from 1997, annual reports on Black–Jewish relations. Research and publication of the 1999 report was funded by a grant from [[Philip Morris]] Companies.<ref name="FFEU1999Report">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://ffeu.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/11.-4thannualReport.pdf 4th Annual Report on Black/Jewish Relations in the United States in 1999] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', 1999/2000.</ref> In 1998 it organised a Black–Jewish Congressional Awards ceremony.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" /> In 1999 [[Marc Schneier]] published ''Shared Dreams: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Jewish Community'', with a preface by [[Martin Luther King III]].<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />

[[Russell Simmons]] joined the board in 2002 and was listed as chairman on IRS Form 990 filings through at least 2017.<ref name="ProPublica" /> In 2007 the organisation opened a dedicated Muslim–Jewish programme. On 7 November 2007 it hosted a [[National Summit of Rabbis and Imams]] in New York.<ref name="Reuters2007">Michael Conlon, [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-muslims-jews-idUSN1431156020071224 U.S. Jews and Muslims seek paths to harmony] ''Reuters'', 24 December 2007.</ref> An annual [[Weekend of Twinning]] / [[Season of Twinning]], pairing mosques and synagogues, began in 2008.<ref name="FFEUHome" />

In 2014 the organisation said it was "honored by the United States Congress … as the National Address for Black–Jewish relations".<ref name="FFEUHome" />

==Timeline==

* '''1989''' – [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] founded by [[Marc Schneier]] and [[Joseph Papp]].<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* '''1990''' – US tax exemption issued (October).<ref name="ProPublica" />
* '''1995''' – [[Coretta Scott King]] addresses Jewish organisational leaders in New York at an [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] gathering.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* '''1996''' – Church-rebuild fund with the [[New York Board of Rabbis]] after Southern Black-church arsons;<ref name="JTA1996" /> first ''New York Directory of Interethnic Activity''.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* '''1997''' – First report on Black–Jewish relations in the United States.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* '''1998''' – First [[Black–Jewish Congressional Awards]] ceremony.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* '''1999''' – ''Shared Dreams'' published; fourth annual Black–Jewish report issued with [[Philip Morris]] support.<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />
* '''2002''' – [[Russell Simmons]] joins the board and later serves as chairman.<ref name="ProPublica" />
* '''2007''' – Muslim–Jewish programme launched; [[National Summit of Rabbis and Imams]], New York, 7 November.<ref name="Reuters2007" />
* '''2008''' – First [[Weekend of Twinning]].<ref name="FFEUHome" />
* '''2009''' – [[Mission of European Imams and Rabbis]] to the United States.<ref name="WashTimes2009">Julia Duin, [https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jul/20/rabbis-imams-visiting-us-for-interfaith-dialogue/ Rabbis, imams visit U.S. for dialogue] ''The Washington Times'', 20 July 2009.</ref>
* '''2010''' – First [[Gathering of European Muslim and Jewish Leaders]], Brussels (with [[European Jewish Congress]] and others); [[Jewish Communal Fund]] grant of US$12,000 recorded for the year ended 30 June 2010.<ref name="EJF2012">[[European Jewish Fund]], [https://europeanjewishfund.org/wp-content/uploads/pdf/EJF%20brochure%202012%20final.pdf EJF brochure 2012] ''European Jewish Fund'', 2012.</ref><ref name="JCF2010">[[Jewish Communal Fund]], [https://jcfny.org/app/uploads/2012/08/Annual_2010.pdf Annual Report 2010] ''Jewish Communal Fund'', 2010, schedule of grants.</ref>
* '''2011''' – [[Marc Schneier]] hosted by [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]] at the royal palace in Manama.<ref name="PR2018">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rabbi-marc-schneier-leads-first-ever-synagogue-mission-to-gulf-state-300597074.html Rabbi Marc Schneier Leads First-Ever Synagogue Mission To Gulf State] ''PR Newswire'', 12 February 2018.</ref>
* '''2012''' – Second [[Gathering of European Muslim and Jewish Leaders]], Paris, 4–5 September, organised with the [[European Jewish Congress]] and the [[Grande Mosquée de Paris]].<ref name="EJF2012" />
* '''2013''' – ''Sons of Abraham'' published by [[Marc Schneier]] and Imam [[Shamsi Ali]]; foreword by [[Bill Clinton]].<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* '''2014''' – Organisation claims US Congressional recognition as national address for Black–Jewish relations.<ref name="FFEUHome" />
* '''2016''' – ''The Forward'' reports unpaid public-relations invoices of about US$92,000.<ref name="Forward2016">Josh Nathan-Kazis, [https://forward.com/news/339553/does-90k-unpaid-debt-signal-trouble-at-rabbi-marc-schneiers-charity/ Does $90K Unpaid Debt Signal Trouble at Rabbi Marc Schneier’s Charity?] ''The Forward'', 28 April 2016.</ref>
* '''February 2018''' – First synagogue congregational mission to [[Bahrain]], invited by [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]].<ref name="PR2018" />
* '''December 2018''' – [[Marc Schneier]] appointed special adviser by [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]].<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* '''June 2019''' – [[Marc Schneier]] attends the US-backed [[Peace to Prosperity]] conference in Manama as part of the Bahraini delegation.<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* '''August–September 2020''' – [[Abraham Accords]] signed; [[Marc Schneier]] publicly predicts [[Bahrain]] will follow the [[United Arab Emirates]] in normalising with [[Israel]].<ref name="Ynet2020">Ynetnews, [https://www.ynetnews.com/article/SyE0saozv Rabbi to Bahrain king: Manama will be next to normalize Israel ties] ''Ynetnews'', 20 August 2020.</ref>
* '''2024''' – Form 990 shows revenue US$1.38 million, [[Marc Schneier]] compensation US$442,847, net assets −US$302,187.<ref name="ProPublica" />

==Work with the Black community==

The founding purpose of the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] was to ease tension between African American and Jewish communities and to invoke the civil-rights-era alliance.<ref name="FFEUMission" /><ref name="FFEUTimeline" /> Programmes have included:

* Hosting [[Coretta Scott King]] before national Jewish leaders in 1995.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* A 1996 rebuild fund for a burned Black church in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the [[New York Board of Rabbis]].<ref name="JTA1996" />
* Annual reports on Black–Jewish relations and a New York interethnic directory in the late 1990s, one report underwritten by [[Philip Morris]].<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />
* [[Black–Jewish Congressional Awards]] from 1998.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* Publication of ''Shared Dreams'' (1999) on [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] and the Jewish community.<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* Ongoing educational initiatives, public dialogue and convenings which the organisation says are intended "to repair an erosion of trust and to confront racism and antisemitism".<ref name="FFEUMission" />
* Celebrity public messaging. In 2006 Reuters reported that rapper [[Jay-Z]] stated "Anti-Semitism is not cool."<ref name="Ynet2006">Reuters, [https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3245893,00.html Rapper Jay-Z: Anti-Semitism not cool] ''Ynetnews'', 1 May 2006.</ref> [[C-SPAN]] lists [[Russell Simmons]] as chairman of the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] in connection with the group's public activity.<ref name="CSPAN">C-SPAN, [https://www.c-span.org/organization/foundation-for-ethnic-understanding/34468/ Foundation for Ethnic Understanding] ''C-SPAN'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref>

The organisation's own 1999 report, with a foreword by [[Hugh Price]] of the [[National Urban League]], framed Black–Jewish relations in terms of "cooperation, conflict, human interest and shared experiences".<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />

==Muslim–Jewish work and West Asia / [[Abraham Accords]]==

From 2007 the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] treated Muslim–Jewish relations as a second core programme. It hosted the [[National Summit of Rabbis and Imams]] (New York, 2007), the annual [[Weekend of Twinning]] / [[Season of Twinning]], a 2009 European clergy mission to the United States, and European leadership gatherings in Brussels (2010) and Paris (2012) with the [[European Jewish Congress]] and the [[Grande Mosquée de Paris]]. About 70 Muslim and Jewish leaders from 18 countries attended the Paris meeting and issued a pledge of "zero tolerance to hatred".<ref name="Reuters2007" /><ref name="WashTimes2009" /><ref name="EJF2012" /> The organisation has partnered with the [[Islamic Society of North America]] on US projects.<ref name="FFEUHome" />

[[Marc Schneier]] has described a personal introduction to Gulf rulers that he says began with the late King [[Abdullah of Saudi Arabia]] and extended to leadership in [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Bahrain]], [[Qatar]], the [[United Arab Emirates]], [[Azerbaijan]] and [[Kazakhstan]].<ref name="FFEUMission" /> In an interview republished by the organisation he said: "It was the late King Abdullah who introduced me to the king of Bahrain, to the emir of Qatar and to the other royal families in the UAE and in Kuwait."<ref name="ArabNews2019" />

Documented Gulf steps include:

* 2011 – first rabbinic audience with [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]] in Manama.<ref name="PR2018" />
* February 2018 – first synagogue congregational mission from [[The Hampton Synagogue]] to [[Bahrain]], invited by the king; the organisation called it the first Jewish congregational mission to an Arab Gulf state.<ref name="PR2018" />
* December 2018 – [[Marc Schneier]] named special adviser to [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]].<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* June 2019 – attendance at the Manama [[Peace to Prosperity]] workshop in the Bahraini delegation. [[Marc Schneier]] argued that economic projects would "help the Palestinians and encourage both sides to pursue peace with the goal of a two-state solution."<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* August 2020 – after the [[United Arab Emirates]]–[[Israel]] deal, [[Marc Schneier]] told [[Ynetnews]] that another Gulf state would normalise "by the end of 2020", naming [[Bahrain]], and that [[Mohammed bin Salman]] was "ready for relations with Israel" while "the older generation is just more conservative."<ref name="Ynet2020" />
* September 2020 – in remarks circulated by the organisation he quoted the King of [[Bahrain]] as saying "repeatedly" that "our only guarantee for a strong, moderate Arab presence in the Gulf would be a strong Israel," and said Gulf states were "looking to Israel to be their defender and protector."<ref name="Arutz2020">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/2020/09/gulf-states-look-to-israel-to-be-their-defender-and-protector-2/ Gulf states look to Israel to be their defender and protector] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'' / Arutz Sheva interview summary, 22 September 2020.</ref>

The organisation's own mission page states that it has "spent more than three decades planting the seeds for the [[Abraham Accords]] and building the relationships that made Gulf-Israel normalisation possible."<ref name="FFEUMission" /> That causal claim is the organisation's and [[Marc Schneier]]'s; the [[Abraham Accords]] themselves were US-brokered diplomatic instruments signed in 2020 between [[Israel]] and the [[United Arab Emirates]] and [[Bahrain]], later joined by other states.<ref name="Ynet2020" /> In 2021 [[Marc Schneier]] wrote in ''Khaleej Times'' that the accords were "about people, not politicians" and listed meetings with US-based ambassadors of the [[United Arab Emirates]], [[Bahrain]], [[Azerbaijan]], [[Kazakhstan]], [[Kuwait]], [[Oman]], [[Qatar]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Sudan]] and [[Uzbekistan]].<ref name="Khaleej2021">[[Marc Schneier]], [https://www.ffeu.org/2021/07/abraham-accords-about-people-not-politicians-writes-marc-schneier/ Abraham Accords about people, not politicians] ''Khaleej Times'' / [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], 8 July 2021.</ref>

==People==

===Directors, officers and staff===

Officers and key employees as reported on IRS Form 990 filings and the organisation's board page are set out below. Compensation is as stated on the cited filing for that year.<ref name="ProPublica" /><ref name="FFEUBoard">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/about-us/board-of-trustees/ Board of Trustees] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref>

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Officers, trustees and staff (selected years)
! Name !! Role !! Notes / compensation (selected years)
|-
| [[Marc Schneier]] || President (founder) || US$442,847 (2024); US$444,270 (2023); US$513,615 + other US$55,577 (2020); US$514,964 + other US$51,490 (2019)
|-
| [[Joseph Papp]] || Founding chairman || Co-founder; died 1991
|-
| [[Russell Simmons]] || Chairman || Listed on Form 990 as chairman at US$0 through at least 2017; not listed on 2022–2024 officer schedules
|-
| [[Ken Sunshine]] || Secretary || US$0 (recent filings)
|-
| [[Michael Heningburg Jr]] || Treasurer || US$0 (recent filings)
|-
| [[David Renzer]] || Director || US$0 (recent filings)
|-
| [[Joseph Koren]] || Director || US$0 (recent filings)
|-
| [[Jason Kampf]] || Director || US$0 (recent filings)
|-
| [[Ali Naqvi]] || Director || US$0 (recent filings); previously described as Young Leadership chair
|-
| [[Chris Sacarabany]] || Executive Director || US$155,769 (2023); US$158,943 (2019); listed US$0 on 2024 officer schedule
|-
| [[Valerie Nash]] || Chief of Staff || US$140,192 (2023); US$121,204 + other US$17,856 (2022)
|-
| [[Robert J. Cyruli]] || Counsel || Listed on late-1990s letterhead
|-
| [[Darwin N. Davis]] || Vice President || Listed on 1999 report letterhead
|-
| [[Stephanie Shnay]] || Secretary || Listed on 1999 report letterhead
|-
| [[Edward Yardeni]] || Treasurer || Listed on 1999 report letterhead
|-
| [[Lawrence D. Kopp]] || Executive Director || Listed on 1999 report letterhead
|-
| [[Walter Ruby]] || Programme officer || Listed by [[C-SPAN]] in connection with organisation programming
|}

GuideStar's 18 September 2025 board extract named [[Ali Naqvi]] and [[David Renzer]] as directors.<ref name="GuideStar" />

==Funding==

The [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] is funded almost entirely by contributions. Form 990 data compiled by [[ProPublica]] show contributions as 100 per cent, or nearly 100 per cent, of revenue in recent years. Individual major donors are not itemised on the public Form 990 (Schedule B is not published).<ref name="ProPublica" />

Documented institutional grants include:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ Documented grants to the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]]
! Grantmaker !! Period !! Amount !! Purpose / source
|-
| [[Philip Morris]] Companies || c. 1999 || not stated || Underwrote research and publication of the 4th Annual Report on Black/Jewish Relations<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />
|-
| [[Jewish Communal Fund]] || year ended 30 June 2010 || US$12,000 || Schedule of grants to philanthropic institutions<ref name="JCF2010" />
|-
| [[Morrison and Foerster Foundation]] || identified January 2025 by Cause IQ || US$12,500 || Grant recorded by Cause IQ from Form 990 data<ref name="CauseIQ">Cause IQ, [https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/foundation-for-ethnic-understanding,133527874/ Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU)] ''Cause IQ'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref>
|-
| [[Leon H. Charney Foundation]] || tax period 2025 || US$1,000 || General purpose<ref name="CauseIQ" />
|}

Selected financial results:<ref name="ProPublica" />

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ IRS Form 990 totals (US$)
! Year ending Dec. !! Revenue !! Expenses !! Assets !! Liabilities !! Net assets !! President compensation
|-
| 2024 || 1,378,933 || 1,345,715 || 356,949 || 659,136 || −302,187 || 442,847
|-
| 2023 || 1,687,736 || 1,359,809 || 296,500 || 631,905 || −335,405 || 444,270
|-
| 2022 || 1,060,426 || 1,137,927 || 501,009 || 185,956 || 315,053 || 259,615
|-
| 2020 || 1,402,528 || 1,783,353 || 220,671 || 336,591 || −115,920 || 513,615
|-
| 2019 || 1,433,009 || 1,636,275 || 331,849 || 66,944 || 264,905 || 514,964
|-
| 2016 || 747,395 || 1,155,847 || 24,656 || 281,956 || −257,300 || 395,303
|-
| 2015 || 932,979 || 1,093,755 || 8,539 || 198,692 || −190,153 || 0 (related 390,506)
|}

In April 2016 ''The Forward'' reported that public-relations consultants [[Matt Dorf]] and [[Steve Rabinowitz]], who had represented the organisation from 2008 to 2011, said they were owed US$91,951.90, with some invoices dating to 2009, and that the organisation's then-latest returns showed liabilities of US$247,000 against assets of about US$30,000. The article noted that [[Marc Schneier]] earned US$257,000 in 2013.<ref name="Forward2016" /> Filings for 2023–2024 again show negative net assets and executive compensation equal to roughly one-third of expenses.<ref name="ProPublica" />

The organisation has also made small outbound grants (for example US$7,500 to [[JBS Jewish Broadcasting Service]], US$5,000 to [[Women in Film and Video]] and US$5,000 to the [[NYC Muslim-Jewish Solidarity Committee]] in 2020, described as Muslim/Jewish relations programme support).<ref name="CauseIQ" />

Gulf and other foreign ministries and centres have been described by the organisation as diplomatic or event co-sponsors rather than as itemised US grantors; those relationships are not separately quantified on Form 990.<ref name="FFEUMission" /><ref name="ArabNews2019" /> Claims of direct operating grants from the [[Tisch Family Foundations]], [[Combined Jewish Philanthropies]], the [[King Hamad Global Center for Peaceful Coexistence]], the [[Republic of Türkiye Ministry of Foreign Affairs]] or the [[Embassy of Kazakhstan]] were not independently itemised on the public filings retrieved for this profile.

==Publications==

* ''Shared Dreams: Martin Luther King Jr. and the Jewish Community'' (1999), [[Marc Schneier]], preface by [[Martin Luther King III]].<ref name="FFEUTimeline" />
* Annual reports on Black–Jewish relations (late 1990s), including the 4th annual report on 1999 with a foreword by [[Hugh Price]].<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />
* ''Sons of Abraham: A Candid Conversation about the Issues That Divide and Unite Jews and Muslims'' (2013), [[Marc Schneier]] and Imam [[Shamsi Ali]], foreword by [[Bill Clinton]].<ref name="ArabNews2019" />
* Columns by [[Marc Schneier]] in ''Arab News''.<ref name="FFEUHome" />

==Criticism and controversies==

''The Forward'' (2016) treated unpaid vendor claims and a weak balance sheet as evidence of financial strain at a charity that continued to pay a high presidential salary relative to its size.<ref name="Forward2016" /> Subsequent Form 990s show recurring negative net assets and presidential pay of about US$440,000–515,000 in several years.<ref name="ProPublica" />

[[Marc Schneier]]'s close identification with [[Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa]] and other Gulf rulers has been presented by the organisation as interfaith diplomacy. The same posture has drawn scrutiny when Gulf partners face accusations over domestic repression; a 2013 ''Forward'' report on a related Schneier-family award controversy noted prior criticism of [[Marc Schneier]]'s 2012 praise of the King of [[Bahrain]] as "a role model in the Arab world for coexistence".<ref name="Forward2013">Josh Nathan-Kazis, [https://forward.com/news/177075/why-did-jewish-group-give-award-to-indonesian-blam/ Why Did Jewish Group Give Award to Indonesian Blamed for Fanning Hatred?] ''The Forward'', 21 May 2013.</ref>

Independent, published evaluations of the long-term effect of [[Weekend of Twinning]] or of the organisation's claimed role in the [[Abraham Accords]] are scarce. Outcome claims rest largely on the organisation's own materials and on [[Marc Schneier]]'s interviews.<ref name="FFEUMission" /><ref name="Ynet2020" />

==Contact==

1 East 93rd Street, Suite 1C
New York, NY 10128
United States
Website: https://www.ffeu.org/

==See also==

* [[Marc Schneier]]
* [[Joseph Papp]]
* [[Russell Simmons]]
* [[Abraham Accords]]
* [[Islamic Society of North America]]
* [[European Jewish Congress]]
* [[Jewish Communal Fund]]

==External links==

* [https://www.ffeu.org/ Official website]
* [https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/133527874 IRS Form 990 filings (ProPublica)]
* [https://www.guidestar.org/profile/13-3527874 GuideStar profile]
* [https://www.c-span.org/organization/foundation-for-ethnic-understanding/34468/ C-SPAN organisation page]
* [https://www.facebook.com/FFEUOfficial FFEU on Facebook]

==Notes==

<references/>

[[Category:Charities]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:Pro-'Israel' organisations]]
[[Category:American Jewish Organizations and Israel-extract]]
[[Category:Interfaith industry]]
[[Category:Zionist movement]]

@@ Line 134: / Line 134: @@
 GuideStar's 18 September 2025 board extract named [[Ali Naqvi]] and [[David Renzer]] as directors.<ref name="GuideStar" />
 ==Funding==
@@ Line 139: / Line 146: @@
 The [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]] is funded almost entirely by contributions. Form 990 data compiled by [[ProPublica]] show contributions as 100 per cent, or nearly 100 per cent, of revenue in recent years. Individual major donors are not itemised on the public Form 990 (Schedule B is not published).<ref name="ProPublica" />
-Documented institutional grants include:
+===Documented cash grants and family gifts===
 {| class="wikitable sortable"
-|+ Documented grants to the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]]
+|+ Documented grants and named gifts to the [[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]]
-! Grantmaker !! Period !! Amount !! Purpose / source
+! Grantmaker / donor !! Period !! Amount !! Purpose / source
 |-
-| [[Philip Morris]] Companies || c. 1999 || not stated || Underwrote research and publication of the 4th Annual Report on Black/Jewish Relations<ref name="FFEU1999Report" />
+| [[Robert and Myra Kraft Family Foundation]] || 2013 || US$25,000 || Listed by FFEU among 2013 Kraft Jewish grants of US$25,000 each, with the [[Anti-Defamation League]], [[MEMRI]] and [[UJA-Federation of New York]]<ref name="FFEUKraft">[[Foundation for Ethnic Understanding]], [https://www.ffeu.org/2015/11/what-patriots-owner-robert-kraft-has-done-for-the-jews/ What Patriots owner Robert Kraft has done for the Jews] ''Foundation for Ethnic Understanding'', 23 November 2015.</ref>
 |-
-| [[Jewish Communal Fund]] || year ended 30 June 2010 || US$12,000 || Schedule of grants to philanthropic institutions<ref name="JCF2010" />
+| [[Will Smith]] and [[Jada Pinkett Smith]] || announced 30 September 2015 || amount not published || Announced by [[Russell Simmons]] at a Hollywood fundraiser in his home; earmarked for Christmas Day meals for homeless people in Los Angeles<ref name="Variety2015">Margaret Lenker, [https://variety.com/2015/scene/vpage/will-smith-jada-pinkett-smith-foundation-for-ethnic-understanding-1201610577/ Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith Donate to the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding] ''Variety'', 5 October 2015.</ref>
 |-
-| [[Morrison and Foerster Foundation]] || identified January 2025 by Cause IQ || US$12,500 || Grant recorded by Cause IQ from Form 990 data<ref name="CauseIQ">Cause IQ, [https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/foundation-for-ethnic-understanding,133527874/ Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU)] ''Cause IQ'', accessed 24 September 2026.</ref>
+| [[Morrison and Foerster Foundation]] || identified January 2025 || US$12,500 || Cause IQ / Form 990 data<ref name="CauseIQ" />
 |-
 | [[Leon H. Charney Foundation]] || tax period 2025 || US$1,000 || General purpose<ref name="CauseIQ" />
 |}
 Selected financial results:<ref name="ProPublica" />
@@ Line 178: / Line 213: @@
 The organisation has also made small outbound grants (for example US$7,500 to [[JBS Jewish Broadcasting Service]], US$5,000 to [[Women in Film and Video]] and US$5,000 to the [[NYC Muslim-Jewish Solidarity Committee]] in 2020, described as Muslim/Jewish relations programme support).<ref name="CauseIQ" />
 ==Publications==