Black Lives Matter co-founder Patrisse Cullors slammed a report of the organization’s purchase of a $6 million California mansion as a “racist and sexist” attack.
The 6,500-square-foot mansion was exposed in a report by investigative journalist Sean Kevin Campbell for New York Magazine. It was “secretly bought” with BLM’s donation funds, according to the magazine and the New York Post.
Cullors took to Instagram to say the report is a “despicable abuse of a platform that’s intended to provide information to the public”.
“The fact that a reputable publication would allow a reporter, with a proven and very public bias against me and other Black leaders, to write a piece filled with misinformation, innuendo and incendiary opinions, is disheartening and unacceptable,” she said.
It was revealed that the residence was purchased by Dyane Pascall, who has close ties with Cullors, two weeks after BLMGNF received $66.5 million from a fiscal sponsor.
“What’s happening to me and to our movement is both racist and sexist,” Cullors continued. “What is happening to me is not about accountability or healing. It’s about destroying my life and destroying a powerful movement”.
Cullors claimed the house was bought to “be a safe space for Black people” and that the purchase wasn’t announced because it required “repairs and renovations”.
“I have never misappropriated funds, and it pains me so many people have accepted that narrative without the presence of tangible truth or facts,” she added.