Leer en Español
The resignation of Marxist Patrisse Cullors from Black Lives Matter following strong allegations of waste and misappropriation of funds was not an isolated event. There has been infighting at black lives matter, and a clash has erupted between the leadership of Black Lives Matter Global Network and its ten other chapters, along with several of the parents of victims that BLM says it defends.
The crisis is occurring because BLM “dissidents” are demanding greater transparency and accountability with the movement’s finances, and even calling for opening the books to actually see what expenditures are being made, suspecting that they include other wasteful spending by its leaders.
In a statement issued by BLM10Plus (that’s what the BLM chapter group calls itself) the dissident leaders claim that “families of those who were lost to police violence spoke out and also demanded accountability, including Michael Brown Sr., Samaria Rice and Lisa Simpson.” They claim that since the release, support for their initiative has doubled, and that even non-Black Lives Matter organizers have stepped forward “making official statements and through social media expressing the harm they have experienced by BLMGNF.”
For BLM10Plus, “black liberation” is not about what Patrisse Cullors does, but about “building a movement that will ensure all of us get free.”
In the release, Black Lives Matter chapters claim that what little they know “comes from persistent requests for transparency over the years,” meaning that since Black Lives Matter Global Network has been unaccountable and, as the Patrisse Cullors scandal might tell us, it has to do with terrible management of their funds.
The allegations also reveal that Black Lives Matter Global Network only deemed chapters as official in those cities where they sought to flatter people of prominence and where they felt there were opportunities for high visibility.
“We never knew who made the decisions or how the decision-making processes were determined,” say the dissidents, who put in writing that the amount of information that was handled differed and depended on how close each chapter was to Black Lives Matter Global Network. “When chapters demanded accountability and transformation internally,” they say, “these processes would continually be disrupted or derailed.”
Joining this lengthy denunciation are others made by mothers who have supported the movement.
Samaria Rice, one of the mothers, commented to the New York Post about Patrisse Cullors’ resignation that “it’s all a facade. She’s only saying that to take the heat off her right now.” Along similar lines, Lisa Simpson said that by resigning, Cullors won’t have to show transparency and thus she will be able to walk away with the money.
“They are benefitting off the blood of our loved ones and they won’t even talk to us,” Rice blasted Black Lives Matter.
Both mothers issued a statement two months ago demanding Shaun King, Patrisse Cullors and the rest of Black Lives Matter Global Network to step down. “Step back and stop monopolizing this fight,” they said.
“We don’t want or need y’all parading in the streets accumulating donations, platforms, movie deals, etc. of the deaths of our loved ones, while the families and communities are left broken” they stated.
Rafael Valera, Venezuelan, student of Political Science, political exile in São Paulo, Brazil since 2017 // Rafael Valera, venezolano, es estudiante de Ciencias Políticas y exiliado político en São Paulo, Brasil desde 2017