Letter | Sheldon Adelson’s supposed generosity

Tell me how much he is going to get from the recent emergency stimulus packages, and then let’s discuss how generous he is.

Chairman and chief executive officer of the Las Vegas Sands Corporation Sheldon Adelson attends a press conference before the opening of the Sands new mega resort The Parisian in Macau, on September 13, 2016. / AFP / ANTHONY WALLACE Image by ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images

By Toby T. Gati April 2, 2020

Dear Editor,

The Forward recently published an article about billionaire Sheldon Adelson’s “generosity.” I felt compelled to respond.

Tell me how much he is going to get from the recent emergency stimulus packages — and then let’s discuss how generous he is.

Tell me how much he pays in federal and state taxes — and then let’s assess how generous he is.

Tell me how big are his charitable contributions supporting right-wing causes to Israel — especially the tax deductible ones — and then let’s discuss how generous he is.

As a public service during this pandemic, the Forward is providing free, unlimited access to all coronavirus articles. If you’d like to support our independent Jewish journalism, click here.

And finally, tell me that his support for his workers will go on as long as the crisis continues — not just a few months — and how he is going to shame all his other billionaire friends to do the same.

And while you’re at it, ask him how workers who don’t have a rich employer are going to survive — then we’ll be able to measure how generous he is.

Sincerely,

Toby T. Gati

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspectives in Opinion. To contact Opinion authors, email [email protected].

A message from our Publisher & CEO Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism so that we can be prepared for whatever news 2025 brings.

Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.

At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.

Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.

— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO