Michael Brown Sr. and Ferguson, Mo., activist Tory Russell, the founder of the International Black Freedom Alliance, demanded $20 million from Black Lives Matter after revelations that the organization brought in $90 million last year.
Brown’s son, Michael Brown Jr., an 18-year-old Black teen, was killed in a police-involved shooting in the city in 2014, prompting a wave of Black Lives Matter demonstrations. Despite the protest movement’s massive haul, Brown said he received just $500.
“His son’s death and the unrest that followed brought global attention to the police brutality issue that has plagued the U.S. for over a century,” the IBFA said in a statement Tuesday. “[Brown Sr.] was left with more questions than answers about the group’s funding.”
“Today, we hold Black Lives Matter accountable,” Russell said in a video Tuesday alongside the elder Brown. “What kind of movement are we building where we’re saying, ‘Black Lives Matter,’ but the freedom fighters and the families are being left behind?”
The International Black Freedom Alliance claimed that local activists have not been properly funded amid the surge of donations to Black Lives Matter.
What Are Your Thoughts?
