Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox. What are we doing with it? An executive at Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (GNF), is accused of "syphoning" more than $10 million from donors, the grassroots arm of the BLM organization said a court filing. The one story you shouldnt miss today, selected by, This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google, It Sure Doesnt Seem Like Havana Syndrome Is Russias Fault. Shalomyah Bowers in Atlanta in May of 2022. An all-woman crew wasn't always the plan, with a handful of men picked and "very, very excited" for the flyover before they were abruptly told they were being replaced, an aircrew member told Fox News Digital. Some of America's largest corporations have pledged or donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the main Black Lives Matter organization, founded by "trained Marxists," that calls for. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson), Bowers and his group went on to scold those who are suing him, accusing them of "falling victim to the carceral logic and social violence that fuels the legal system.". Were making it clear to Black people that were an institution and that were here to stay, said Mr. Bowers. The distinction meant the group would have to disclose information about donors and expenditures in an annual filing known as a 990. And a chatbot is not a human. The credibility of the entire movement is at stake based on these choices, for better or worse., But he added, They deserve a little grace here. ', The BLM movement first emerged in 2013. The. This story has been shared 129,654 times. Controversy surrounding the organization's finances has elicited probes by at least two state attorneys general. He was acquitted in a Senate trial. Theyre trying to right the ship. Arthur Hayes rubbed success in the Feds face and got busted. Real-estate purchases have been a problem for the BLMGNF outside of the U.S. as well. The documents show that about $26 million was used on grants to organizations, local chapters, and families. Have you subscribed to theGrios podcast, Dear Culture? Download our newest episodes now!TheGrio is now on Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Roku. 2023 FOX News Network, LLC. Could Alec Baldwin Really Go to Prison for the. BLM vowed to use the money to be more active. 'There was an attempt to be transparent with where the money went by the impact report. The former BLM leader did admit previously that her sister, mother, and brother were employed with the organization. In a statement provided to theGrio, Black Lives Matter Global Network responded to concerns regarding Cullors earnings from the organization. BLM's national organizationspent more than $1.2 million lobbying members of Congress last year, tax filings show. After accounting for expenses and grant disbursements, the organization. The median home price has cooled off to $790,000, a notable drop from last year's price of $925,000, Redfin data showed." 'I've thought about this a lot because for the request to have BLM be fully transparent actually makes BLM more vulnerable and makes the people who are inside BLM more vulnerable. The tax filing suggests the organization is still finding its footing: It currently has no executive director or in-house staff. The new filing also revealed thatCullors reimbursed BLM $73,523 for a charter flight for foundation-related travel, which the organization says she took in 2021 out of concern for COVID-19 and security threats. I feel like Im really thriving., Update: After this article was published, a spokesperson for Khan said in a statement, Janaya Future Khan has no knowledge of this house and has never had access to the financials of BLM. As the organization supporting this movement, weve decided that we will wait no longer., Cullors told the AP that a key focus was now on a need to reinvest into black communities.. BLM previously came under fire from local black activists after the New York Post reported in April that Cullors, then its executive director, had spent $3.2 million on real estate across the. Upcoming Events. The organization offered the first official accounting of its finances recently, disclosing a filing to the I.R.S. Farm Heroes Saga, the #4 Game on iTunes. A comprehensive new government study concludes that the illness probably wasnt caused by foreign adversaries. The newly released tax filings showed how Cullors used charity funds to pay her friends and family large sums for various 'consulting' services, as well as charter a private flight. Shalomyah Bowers, left, Cicley Gay, center, and D'Zhane Parker pose for a portrait on May 13, 2022, in Atlanta. Cullors now owns three properties in Los Angeles - including this one in the hills above the city. So far neither bill has passed both chambers of Congress. It means investing in black communities, trusting them with their dollars. Now, we are taking time to build efficient infrastructure to run the largest Black, abolitionist, philanthropic organization to ever exist in the United States.. or redistributed. One of our biggest goals this year is taking the dollars we were able to raise in 2020 and building out the institution weve been trying to build for the last seven and a half years, she said in an interview. Now hes returning to a shell-shocked industry. Damon Turner and Patrisse Cullors are pictured together in 2019. The documents also show how Cullors used charity funds to pay her friends and family large sums for various 'consulting' services, as well as charter a private flight. The donations exploded following the May 2020 death of George Floyd, whose death under the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer sparked protests across the US and around the world, the foundation said. She said the support she got from other teams was 'overwhelming. The father of Cullors' child,Damon Turner, was paid nearly $970,000to help 'produce live events'. DeSantis Promises Florida Will Control Disney Content. That impact report didn't land well. As a new board, we are building policies that didnt exist, operational and administrative infrastructure that didnt exist. Twelve BLM chapters, including those in Boulder, Colorado; Boston; Washington, D.C.; Detroit; Los Angeles; Gary, Indiana; and Philadelphia, received pledges for grants of up to $500,000. After the transfer, Black Lives Matter leaders began using the house in various ways, including as a set for recording videos and staying overnight when they didnt feel safe at their own homes. We were told that concerns about financial transparency and community accountability were rumours, not a big deal, and whispers from so-called counter-organizers., Tory Russell, a prominent activist in Ferguson, Missouri, said that he felt depressed whenhe learnedabout about the California property. Additionally, the Post claims that in recent years, Cullors, a self-described Marxist, paid $510,000 for a three-bedroom home in Inglewood, California. Our demands continue to go ignored. BLMGNF received backlash following the purchase, including from some of the organization's supporters. I was the victim of a heinous crime in my own home - and it gave me more than a 'flush' of anger! Here's the team to help you do that.''. Nonprofit experts say that any apparent intermingling of resources among BLMGNF, Cullors, and outside entities might jeopardize the charitys tax-exempt status. The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF) said in the report that it raised over $90 million in 2020 alone, giving about a quarter of it - nearly three times the industry norm -. 'Presenting (donor) names after the fact, at this point, would likely be a betrayal of that trust. All Black activists know the fear these malicious and serious actions are meant to instill: the fear of being silenced, the trauma of being targeted, the torture of feeling ones family is exposed to danger just for speaking out against unjust systems. Ted Cruz accuses AG Merrick Garland of ignoring threats to Supreme Court justices and crisis pregnancy centers in VERY heated Senate exchange, Psychologist reveals the most common phrases that NARCISSISTS use to manipulate you during EVERY stage of a relationship, New York City man, 43, is arrested after hijacking American Airlines BUS from JFK Airport then taking it on a 17-mile joyride through Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan before being caught, Rolling with the punches! With $8.4 million in expenses and $21.7 million committed to local chapters, the group ended 2020 with an approximate balance of $60 million, it stated in an impact statement. Bowers and his group denied all claims of financial misconduct and chastised those suing him for falling victim to the carceral logic and social violence that fuels the legal system in taking legal action against him. There's a lot of white folks being like, 'We just got to put the money.''. The disclosures had contributed to the idea that there is a disturbing gap between the fortunes of the movements most visible figures and on-the-ground activists across the country, and Cullors resigned as executive director of Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation on May 27, within a few days of the patio chat. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Within a week, Pascall transferred ownership of the house to an LLC established in Delaware by the law firm Perkins Coie. According to public records, the property was . The foundations finances have been subjected to criticism both from participants in the Black Lives Matter movement and from their opponents. To be abundantly clear, as a registered 501c3, BLMGNF cannot and did not commit any organizational resources toward the purchase of personal property by any employee or volunteer. Other lobbying priorities listed in the new tax filing included campaigning against the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, which BLM organizers argued did not go far enough in reforming policing. Why hasnt my familys foundation received any assistance from the movement? he asked in a statement last month. The "Outnumbered" panel discussed the scandal and the repercussions on the broader "Black Lives Matter" movement itself. Defense attorney Joshua Ritter on why prosecutors have a tough path to conviction. In an emailed statement on April 1, Shalomyah Bowers, a BLMGNF board member, said that the organization bought Campus with the intention for it to serve as housing and studio space for recipients of the Black Joy Creators Fellowship. The fellowship, which provides recording resources and dedicated space for Black creatives to launch content online and in real life focused on abolition, healing justice, urban agriculture and food justice, pop culture, activism, and politics, was announced the following morning. Story tips can be sent to jon.brown@fox.com. Board members said they are cooperating with civil investigations in Indiana and Ohio, and they have turned over relevant documents to those authorities. Last month, the organization came under fire after it was revealed that BLM received over $90 million in response to the uprisings launched after the deaths of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and others, theGRIO reported. Legal Statement. 'But we also knew that the minute we shared the information with the public, that the right-wing media would do what they always do and they always did. It reported receiving $90 million in donations last year, the most it had ever raised in a year. Even if everything about the house is above board, the general air of secrecy is out of step with the transparency that is expected of charitable ortax-exempt organizations. The memo notes: Holes in security story: Use in public YT videos.. Before that, he was the criminal justice reporter for the Brooklyn Eagle. Two mothers who lost their sons to police violence demanded the organization stop using their names to raise funds. The family foundations created in honor of Floyd and others killed by police and vigilantes - Trayvon Martin and Oscar Grant - each received contributions of $200,000. NYPD's use of vehicle stops shows that police pulled over hundreds of thousands of drivers last year and about 90% of the people searched or arrested in those . The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation on Tuesday released a 63-page Form 990, covering the fiscal year from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2021, BLM spent $6million on a Los Angeles mansion, according to the filings, The new filing also revealed paid the foundation $390 over her uses of the 6,500 square-foot Studio City property in Los Angeles for two private events, Cullors has repeatedly denied claims that she took money from BLM for personal matters and has reiterated that all the purchases and transactions - including the lavish 6,500 square-foot Studio City property home - were legitimate. Controversy surrounding the organization's finances has elicited probes by at least two state attorneys general. Black Lives Matter of Greater New York chair Hawk Newsome questions how much Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors has contributed to charity. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. 'We are decolonizing philanthropy,' Gay said. 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