A leftist group facing financial struggles has been taken to court in New York over whether it has a claim to a deceased professorās $4.7 million retirement fund.
The estate of late sociology professor New York University (NYU) professor David Greenberg sued NYU and the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) on Friday, saying NYU cannot proceed with plans to give funds to DSA, court records show. While the group, which is in part influenced by Marxist ideology, has claimed several Democrats in Congress as members and hosts more than 180Ā chapters around the country, it has faced financial and membership struggles in recent months.
The lawsuit alleges that NYU is trying to divert funds that Greenberg originally meant for New American Moment, āa now-defunct political organizationā that primarily existed to protest the Vietnam War. Greenberg, who died in 2024 at 82, had once named New American Moment as a contingent beneficiary for his retirement, according to the lawsuit. The organization supposedly merged with DSA in 1982, though the lawsuit claims the merger did not follow legal processes and the DSA is not a legitimate successor.
Greenbergās estate said he underwrote New American Moment due to āfurtherance of his sincerely held political beliefs, which were closely aligned with the ideological principles and objectivesā of the original group.
NYU and DSAās media teams did not immediately respond to requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation.
DSA has reportedly struggled to retain members and manage its finances since at least January 2024, when leaders asked members to step down and take severance payments. The group admitted publicly in August 2024 to being āin a crisisā and that its membership had been āshrinkingā since 2021.
DSA also came under widespread criticism, even from Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, for aggressively working to delegitimize Israel after Hamasās Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attacks. DSA later pressured Ocasio-Cortez in July 2024 by withdrawing an endorsement over claims that she wasnāt anti-Israel enough.
DSAās August statement on membership said āworking class radicalizationā over Israel had helped, rather than hindered the organizationās growth.
An attorney for Greenbergās estate did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Itās unclear how much of the $4.7 million retirement fund NYU allegedly planned to pay out to the leftist organization.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporterās byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contactĀ [email protected].