Gail Furman (1946 – 2019) was an American psychologist and political donor. Furman was president of the Furman Foundation, Inc. The foundation is a major donor to the Tides Center and the Media Matters for America, a left-leaning center for journalism founded by author David Brock.[1][2]
Gail Furman | |
|---|---|
| Born | Gail Gorman 1946 Queens, New York, U.S. |
| Died | April 17, 2019 |
| Alma mater | University of Michigan (BA) New York University (PhD) |
| Spouse | Jay Furman (divorced) |
| Children | Jason Furman Jesse Furman |
Early life and education
editFurman was born in 1946 to a Jewish family in Queens, New York, the daughter of Martha and David Gorman.[3][4] Her mother was a performer who used the stage name Marny Frances.[3] She graduated from the University of Michigan and held a PhD in psychology from New York University.[5][6]
Career
editFurman worked as a psychologist at the Fieldston School and the Dalton School from 1973 until 1990.[5][7]
In December 2003, Furman attended a gathering in New York City organized by Erica Payne in order to watch a screening of Democracy Alliance founder Rob Stein's PowerPoint presentation, The Conservative Message Machine Money Matrix. After the presentation, Furman agreed in front of the group to donate more than $25,000 to fund Stein to conduct a research project to determine "what kind of groups the Left needed to fund."[8]
At the second meeting of the Democracy Alliance in October 2005, Furman "demanded to know why the alliance wasn't creating a 'nerve center' that could book progressives on TV news shows."[9]
Furman along with George Soros and other Democracy Alliance members John R. Hunting; Paul Rudd (co-founder of Adaptive Analytics); Pat Stryker; Nicholas Hanauer; ex-Clinton administration official Rob Stein; Drummond Pike; real estate developer Robert Bowditch; Pioneer Hybrid International-heir and congressional candidate Scott Wallace; Susie Tompkins Buell; real estate developer Albert Dwoskin; and Taco Bell-heir Rob McKay, funded the Secretary of State Project, an American non-profit, 527 political action committee focused on electing reform-minded progressive Secretaries of State in battleground states, who typically oversee the election process.[10] The Alliance was critical in getting California Secretary of State Debra Bowen and Minnesota Secretary of State Mark Ritchie re-elected.
Personal life
editShe was married to real estate developer Jay Furman; they had two children: Barack Obama's chief economic advisor Jason Furman and federal judge Jesse Furman.[11] They later divorced.
External links
editNotes
edit- ^ Once a liar, always a liar
- ^ Jewish Daily Forward: "Wesley Clark Jumps in With Kosher-Style Kickoff - Whirlwind Week Sees General Angling for Dean’s Voters, Dollars" By E.J. Kessler September 26, 2003
- ^ a b "Deaths Gorman, Martha". The New York Times. October 25, 2001.
- ^ "Furman--Gail. UJA-Federation of New York mourns the passing of Gail Furman, beloved mother and mother-in-law of our friends Jesse Furman and Ariela Dubler who have long demonstrated leadership and an unwavering commitment to the Jewish community". New York Times. April 19, 2019.
- ^ a b "Gail Furman Psychologist". Human Rights First. Retrieved January 13, 2019.
- ^ "Gail Furman - Discover the Networks". www.discoverthenetworks.com. Retrieved 2020-05-27.
- ^ Kuper, Peter (November 24, 1997). This Is Your Child. p. 52.
{{cite book}}:|magazine=ignored (help) - ^ The Argument: Billionaires, Bloggers, and the Battle to Remake Democratic Politics p. 37
- ^ op cit, p. 118-119
- ^ Neubauer, Chuck (June 23, 2011). "Soros and liberal groups seeking top election posts in battleground states". Washington Times.
- ^ "In Memoriam: Jay Furman, 1942-2015". New York University School of Law News. January 5, 2015.