Since the death of Trayvon Martin in 2014, the Black Lives Matter movement has become a voice for the African American community.
BLM has more than 40 chapters around the world educating the public about police brutality and systematic racism which affects the Black community the most. With receiving more than $90 million in donations and global recognition, people with opposing beliefs are just waiting for them to slip up.
Recently, BLM made a $6 million purchase that has a lot of people confused.
New York Magazine reports a large portion of money from donation funds was used to purchase a $6 million mansion in October 2020 The organization raised $90 million in that year alone and was committed to donating $21.7 million to local BLM chapters. However, some of those chapters have yet to receive the financial support promised to them.
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Even families of victims who were killed by police brutality have called upon the movement to receive assistance with their foundations.
Samaria Rice, the mother of Tamir Rice who was shot by police because he was holding a toy gun, and Lisa Simpson, mother of Richard Risher who also was shot by police, made an official statement. They called out the organization for basically using their families' names to acclimate donations.
“We don’t want or need y’all parading in the streets accumulating donations, platforms, movie deals, etc., off the death of our loved ones, while the families and communities are left clueless and broken,” the statement said.
The co-founders said the use of the “campus” was created as a safe house for leaders whose safety has been threatened and as a headquarters for members of the organization to create content promoting social justice and change. Averaging about 6,700 square feet, the mansion includes seven bedrooms, six bathrooms, a pool and guest house, a sound stage and a music studio.
Patrisse Cullors and Melina Abdullah, co-founders of BLM, responded to allegations three months after the speculations came about and denied all allegations that the donation money was being used for personal benefit.
“To clarify again, the property the reporter addressed was purchased in 2020 as a space where those within the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF) and broader movement community could work, create content, host meetings, and foster creativity,” she said in an Instagram post.
Yet the 75% of the donation money used hasn’t been explained.
The lack of honesty and donors not receiving answers on where or how their money is being used gives the whole movement a bad reputation. How can that amount of money be accumulated, yet no significant change has been made to align with the mission of the Black Lives Matter movement?
