The Justice Department has opened a federal inquiry into leaders of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation over charges they mishandled donor money raised around the 2020 George Floyd protests. Allegations include poor transparency, questionable governance, and purchases like a Southern California property that drew sharp criticism. Multiple subpoenas and at least one search warrant have been reported as the probe unfolds.
The announcement signals real consequences for an organization that collected huge sums and operated with little public accounting. BLMGNF raised more than $90 million during the 2020 unrest, and critics say donors deserve clear answers about how that money was spent. For conservatives who long suspected a political layer to the organization, the investigation is validation that oversight was overdue.
The Justice Department is investigating whether leaders in the Black Lives Matter movement defrauded donors who contributed tens of millions of dollars during racial justice protests in 2020, according to multiple people familiar with the matter.
In recent weeks, federal law enforcement officials have issued subpoenas and served at least one search warrant as part of an investigation into the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, Inc. and other Black-led organizations that helped spark a national reckoning on systemic racism, said the people, who were not authorized to discuss an ongoing criminal probe by name and spoke on condition of anonymity to The Associated Press.
It was not clear if the investigation would result in criminal charges, but its mere existence invites fresh scrutiny to a movement that in recent years has faced criticism about its public accounting of donations it has received. The recent burst of investigative activity is also unfolding at a time when civil rights organizations have raised concerns about the potential for the Trump administration to target a variety of progressive and left-leaning groups that have been critical of him, including those affiliated with BLM, the transgender rights movement and anti-ICE protesters.
Accusations have come from people across the political spectrum, and they focus on failures in transparency and governance. Local chapters say national leaders fundraised off their work while excluding on-the-ground leaders and withholding promised funds. Those tensions turned into litigation in Los Angeles and other places, raising questions about internal controls and who actually benefited.
The scandal intensified when reporting revealed the foundation bought a $6 million compound in Southern California, a purchase that supporters and critics alike noticed. The property included a large house, a pool, office space, and other amenities described as a meeting venue and artist campus. That buy sparked talk that public donations were being used in ways donors would not have expected.
Recent disclosures that the foundation had paid $6 million for a Los Angeles compound in 2020 unleashed a torrent of criticism and social media chatter. The property in Studio City — including a home with six bedrooms and bathrooms, a swimming pool, a soundstage and office space — is meant to be both a meeting venue and a campus for Black artists.
Some criticism came from BLM supporters like Justin Hansford, director of the Thurgood Marshall Civil Rights Center at Howard University. He said the property purchase could be weaponized by movement opponents, leading possible donors to shy away from Black-led social justice organizations: “That’s the thing that you don’t want to get out of hand.”
Patrice Cullors, who led BLMGNF at the time, defended the purchase of the mansion, saying she “wanted to make sure that the global network foundation had an asset that wasn’t just financial resources” because “not many Black-led organizations have property.”
State authorities also raised concerns. The California Attorney General issued a delinquency notice in 2022, warning that the foundation failed to file mandatory reports and was out of compliance with nonprofit rules. That kind of administrative failure exacerbates suspicions about financial oversight and fuels calls for stronger accountability from donors and regulators alike.
The lawsuit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, specifically names Shalomyah Bowers, an Oakland-based policy advocate and consultant who joined the board of directors of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation earlier this year.
The chapters, organized under the umbrella organization Black Lives Matter Grassroots, allege that he was “a middle man turned usurper” who refused to abide by a transition plan to wind down the foundation and transfer its power back to the activists. Instead, they allege, he went “rogue” and helped steal more than $10 million in donations.
“While BLM leaders and movement workers were on the street risking their lives,” the lawsuit claims, “Mr. Bowers remained in his cushy offices devising a scheme of fraud and misrepresentation to break the implied-in-fact contract between donors and BLM.”
From a conservative standpoint, the picture is clear: organizations that raise vast sums from sympathetic donors must be held to strict standards. When charities lack transparency, donors—many of whom gave in good faith—are betrayed. The federal probe could recover answers and, if wrongdoing is proven, hold individuals accountable for abusing donor trust.
It is also fair to ask why this level of scrutiny took years to materialize. Critics argue the prior political environment created a reluctance to investigate powerful progressive groups, and that left a vacuum where questionable practices went unchecked. The current inquiry offers a chance to restore standards and remind political nonprofits that public trust requires accountability.
Editor’s Note: The Schumer Shutdown is here. Rather than put the American people first, Chuck Schumer and the radical Democrats forced a government shutdown for healthcare for illegals. They own this.
