Black Lives Matter paid $1.8m to companies owned by founder’s relatives

The Black Lives Matter foundation (BLM) paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to its co-founder’s brother and the father of her child for security and “creative services”, tax filings show.

The leaders of the racial justice movement received $90 million in donations amid the 2020 protests triggered by the police murder of George Floyd.

But its tax filings suggest the BLM foundation is still finding its footing and currently has no executive director or in-house staff.

The organisation has come under fire after its tax filing for the last fiscal year revealed it paid huge sums to a select group of consultants which included relatives or close associates of BLM’s founders.

Among them was BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullor’s brother, Paul Cullors, whose security firm was paid $840,000.

Trap Heals LLC, a company founded by Damon Turner, who fathered a child with Ms Cullors, received almost $970,000.

Meanwhile more than $2.1 million was paid to Bowers Consulting. The company’s founder, Shalomyah Bowers, was recently named a board member of the BLM foundation.

The Black Lives Matter foundation (BLM) paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to its co-founder’s brother and the father of her child for security and “creative services”, tax filings show.

The leaders of the racial justice movement received $90 million in donations amid the 2020 protests triggered by the police murder of George Floyd.

But its tax filings suggest the BLM foundation is still finding its footing and currently has no executive director or in-house staff.

The organisation has come under fire after its tax filing for the last fiscal year revealed it paid huge sums to a select group of consultants which included relatives or close associates of BLM’s founders.

Among them was BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullor’s brother, Paul Cullors, whose security firm was paid $840,000.

Trap Heals LLC, a company founded by Damon Turner, who fathered a child with Ms Cullors, received almost $970,000.

Meanwhile more than $2.1 million was paid to Bowers Consulting. The company’s founder, Shalomyah Bowers, was recently named a board member of the BLM foundation.