The head of New York City’s Black Lives Matter (BLM) chapter is calling for an investigation into Patrisse Cullors, a co-founder of BLM, following her purchase of four homes worth millions of dollars.
Hawk Newsome, who leads Black Lives Matter Greater New York City, called for “an independent investigation” into Cullors’ finances and the operations of the national Black Lives Matter group.
“If you go around calling yourself a socialist, you have to ask how much of her own personal money is going to charitable causes,” Newsome told the New York Post. “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.”
Newsome’s call comes amid reports that Cullors has gone on a home-buying binge spending a total of $3.2 million on four properties. The prominent Black Lives Matter leader has purchased a $1.4 million property near Los Angeles and a $415,000 “custom ranch” near Atlanta within the past year in addition to several other properties purchased since 2016, according to the Post.
The L.A. and Atlanta purchases came after the publication of Cullors memoir, “When They Call You a Terrorist,” and after she signed a “a multi-platform” deal with Warner Bros. Television Group.
Cullors’ national group, the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF), raked in an estimated $90 million in donations last year amid widespread unrest over the death of George Floyd. The trial over Floyd’s death is ongoing in Minneapolis.
Grassroots Black Lives Matter activists and local leaders have grown increasingly skeptical and openly critical of the BLMGNF. Last year, 10 local Black Lives Matter chapters accused the national foundation of hiding “untold millions of dollars” from activists and called for greater transparency in the organization. As The Daily Wire reported:
Black Lives Matter chapters in Chicago, Denver, Hudson Valley in New York, Indianapolis, New Jersey, Oklahoma City, Philadelphia, San Diego, Vancouver in Washington state, and Washington, D.C., signed onto a statement issued Monday condemning the Black Lives Matter Global Network (BLMGN) Foundation. The foundation, the statement said, has taken major actions without input from chapter leaders and refused until recently to make any effort to distribute millions of dollars-worth of donations to grassroots activists.
“Since the establishment of BLMGN, our chapters have consistently raised concerns about financial transparency, decision making, and accountability,” the statement says. “Despite years of effort, no acceptable internal process of accountability has ever been produced by BLMGN and these recent events have undermined the efforts of chapters seeking to democratize its processes and resources.”
The chapters list several accusations against BLMGN, which is led by Executive Director Patrisse Khan-Cullors, a co-founder and the sole board member of BLMGN. Khan-Cullors was installed as executive director of the national organization “against the will of most chapters and without their knowledge,” the local chapters say.