Black Lives Matter Shuts Down Fundraising After Blue States Threatened To Sue

Black Lives Matter (BLM) removed fundraising features from its website Wednesday after California and Washington threatened to hold the group’s leaders personally liable for its missing financial records, the Washington Examiner reported.

BLM hasn’t had a known leader managing its $60 million bankroll since May 2021, the Examiner reported. California demanded that BLM cease all fundraising activities Wednesday due to the BLM Global Network’s failure to report on its 2020 finances, and the state said it would hold BLM leaders personally liable if they do not submit information about the organization’s finances within 60 days.

Washington state ordered BLM to cease fundraising over the same issues in January, according to the Examiner. The organization reportedly accepted a donation from a Washington resident as recently as Monday. The BLM website also reportedly accepted a $1 donation out of California early Wednesday, but it has since removed all fundraising features from its website.

In addition to Washington and California, the BLM organization is out of compliance in Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina and Virginia, according to the Examiner.

“It appears that the house of cards may be falling, and this happens eventually with nearly every scam, scheme, or illegal enterprise,” Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita told the Examiner. “I see patterns that scams kind of universally take: failure to provide board members, failure to provide even executive directors, failure to make your filings available.”

The organization drew attention in May 2021 for potential corruption after co-founder and executive director Patrisse Cullors spent $3.2 million on four homes across the country. BLM Global Network reportedly raked in more than $90 million in 2020.