The world’s largest online retailer Amazon has excluded the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF) from its AmazonSmile charity program, as the organization was unable to provide information on what tens of millions of donations were spent on, The New York Post reported on Friday.
“States have rules for nonprofits, and organizations participating in AmazonSmile need to meet those rules,” Amazon’s spokesperson told the newspaper. “Unfortunately, this organization fell out of compliance with the rules in several states, so we’ve had to temporarily suspend them from the program until they come into compliance.”
Amazon plans to keep the money, raised for BLMGNF, “until they’re back in compliance,” according to the spokesperson.
In May last year, artist and founder of the Black Lives Matter movement Patrisse Khan-Cullors announced her resignation from her formal role as executive director of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation. The activist explained her decision with plans to pursue her own career, but media speculated that the real reason could be her several homes worth millions of dollars.
12 February 2022, 15:19 GMT
In October 2020, BLMGNF received more than $65 million in donations from Thousand Currents, a charity that manages the assets of grassroots nonprofits, according to documents filed with the California Attorney General. BLMGNF still failed to account for the spent cash. As a result, several states have banned BLMGNF from its fundraising initiatives.