A local Black Lives Matter chapter chief has called for an investigation into one of the founders of the activist group after reports emerged the self-styled Marxist spent millions on multiple real estate purchases.
Hawk Newsome, the head of the greater New York City chapter of BLM, questioned Patrisse Khan-Cullors’s new purchases of four properties totaling about $3 million. He called for “an independent investigation” into how the global activist organization spends its money, according to the New York Post.
BLACK LIVES MATTER FOUNDATION RAISED MORE THAN $90M IN 2020
“If you go around calling yourself a socialist, you have to ask how much of her own personal money is going to charitable causes,” he said. “It’s really sad because it makes people doubt the validity of the movement and overlook the fact that it’s the people that carry this movement.”
Over the last five years, Khan-Cullors reportedly purchased a three-bedroom house in Inglewood, California, for $510,000; a four-bedroom home in South Los Angeles for $590,000; a house in Malibu, LA, which cost $1.4 million; and a “custom ranch” on 3.2 acres in Georgia that cost $415,000.
The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation raised more than $90 million in 2020, and it gave $21.7 million in grants to a variety of leftist activist groups and local BLM chapters.
Local BLM chapters expressed frustration with the BLM national group’s leadership in a December letter signed by groups from Philadelphia, Indianapolis, the District of Columbia, Chicago, Oklahoma City, New Jersey, San Diego, Denver, Hudson Valley, and Vancouver in the state of Washington.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Black Lives Matter says it was founded in 2013 in response to George Zimmerman being acquitted in the murder trial of Trayvon Martin even though former President Barack Obama’s Justice Department under Attorney General Eric Holder found “insufficient evidence” to pursue federal civil rights charges.
The movement gained more prominence in 2020 following the deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor. Both Floyd and Taylor were killed by law enforcement officials, and their deaths sparked nationwide protests and debate about use of force and the policing of minority communities.
