‘Black Lives Matter’ faces financial collapse after a tough year, leaked documents reveal.

Black Lives Matter on the Verge of Financial Collapse After a Brutal Year

Black Lives Matter (BLM) has been hit hard by a rising tide of red ink, with new documents revealing that the organization has increased spending on management. The Washington Free Beacon recently published the federal tax return of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, which showed that BLM raked in $76,872,002 in contributions and grants in the 2020-2021 reporting year, but this nosedived to $9,268,283 in the 2021-2022 year covered by the document.

For the 2021-2022 year, BLM spent $17,048,810, resulting in a net loss of $8,559,748. The document also revealed that BLM lost $11.7 million in assets in the course of the year, despite having roughly $30 million in assets at the end of the reporting year.

Issues with Compliance and Contractors

After multiple issues with compliance in several states, BLM had to shut down its online presence. More than $10.5 million went to contractors, many of which were linked to friends and family of former executive director Patrisse Cullors. Cullors’ brother, Paul Cullors, collected a $126,000 salary and $1.6 million through his businesses, which provided security services. Shalomyah Bowers, the current executive director and close friend of Cullors, received $1.7 million for services through his consulting firm.

Danielle Edwards, sister of former Black Lives Matter board member Raymond Howard, received roughly $1.1 million as a consultant. A sister organization, Black Lives Matter Grassroots, accused Bowers of “blazing a path of irreparable harm to BLM” and “siphoning” millions to his firm, according to the New York Post. The group claimed in a lawsuit that “instead of using the donations for its intended purposes, Mr. Bowers diverted these donations to his own coffers.”

Management Spending Rises as Cash Flow Dwindles

Despite losing revenue, funds spent on management rose as the cash flow dwindled. In the 2020-2021 reporting year, BLM spent $3,760,600 on management, which was 4.72 percent of its revenue. In the 2021-2022 reporting year, management spending rose to $5,099,244, which was 60.07 percent of revenue.

Brian Mittendorf, a professor of accounting at Ohio State University, said the red flag the document shows, to him, is the “continued and substantial transactions with insiders.” He added that while this is not improper per se, it does raise concerns about potential conflicts of interest in governing the organization.

Despite the challenges, BLM remains committed to its mission. However, it will need to address its financial issues to continue its work effectively.

“While Patrisse Cullors was forced to resign due to charges of using BLM’s funds for her personal use, it looks like she’s still keeping it all in the family,” said Paul Kamenar, an attorney with the National Legal and Policy Center.

The leaked documents show that BLM is on the verge of financial collapse after a brutal year. It remains to be seen how the organization will address its financial issues and continue its work effectively.