Why did BLM pay $5.8m for mansion was bought for $3.1m a few days earlier? Patrisse Cullors calls question RACIST
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: A luxurious Los Angeles mansion’s purchase by the BLM foundation has raised some serious questions after it emerged that its price apparently increased by $2.7 million in just a few days after being bought for $3.1 million initially by a real estate developer. As per reports, the 6,500 square-foot, six-bedroom property in Studio City was first bought by Dyane Pascall, who was working for BLM founder Patrisse Cullors and her partner, on October 21, 2020 for $3.1 million.
However, six days later, Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF) bought it for $5.8 million in cash, without providing any explanation regarding the sudden price increase. Not just that, the mansion built in 1936 is also apparently 257.43 percent “more expensive” than other properties in the area. It was bought days after the foundation received $66.5 million in donations after the tragic death of Geroge Floyd in May 2020.
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Tom Anderson, director of the government integrity project at the National Legal and Policy Center, said: “A review of property assessment records show the value of the mansion BLMGNF purchased skyrocketed while all the neighboring properties saw an average of less than a five percent increase. This raises serious questions concerning the purchase price of the house and the way the transaction was handled through cash and a shadowy LLC.”
The revelation was first reportedly brought to light by the New York Magazine that has now been called out by Cullors, who on Wednesday, April 6, said that the doubt and criticism were “racist and sexist”. She also reportedly defended the non-disclosure of property’s purchase by saying it’s a “safe space” for black activists and thought leaders that needed renovation.
Slamming the New York Magazine’s investigation, Cullors, who resigned from her BLMGNF position of executive director in May 2021, reportedly said it’s “a despicable abuse of a platform that's intended to provide truthful information to the public”. She also blasted the author of the piece and stated that the article was “filled with misinformation, innuendo, and incendiary opinions.”
In a statement shared on her Instagram page, Cullors wrote, “Journalism is supposed to mitigate harm and inform our communities. That 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. To clarify again, the property the reporter addressed was purchased in 2020 as a space where those within the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF) and broader movement community could work, create content, host meetings and foster creativity.”
She continued: “Although I cannot speak to how BLMGNF uses the property currently as I left the organization last year in May, it was purchased to be a safe space for Black people in the community. The reason it wasn’t announced prior is not nefarious as the headline infers, the property needed repairs and renovation. I do not own the property, have never lived there,” before adding: “Nevertheless, this will soon be made clear upon the release of the BLM 990s. To those within our movement and others who have looked to me for leadership, I’m sorry you have consistently had to engage with this kind of hateful and erroneous content. I admittedly have not always responded and I know my silence has contributed to doubt. I apologize if it has caused you harm of any kind.”