Donations to Black Lives Matter are funneled through a Democratic fundraising group

Financial contributions to Black Lives Matter are first processed through a Democratic and progressive fundraising group, one which takes a cut of all donations before passing it along to the racial justice organization. 

Donations to Black Lives Matter have been skyrocketing in recent weeks amid ongoing protests in response to the killing of George Floyd, a black Minneapolis resident. Floyd died after a police officer kneeled on his neck for several minutes; bystander video of the incident captured Floyd screaming, “I can’t breathe!” as the officer kept his knee on Floyd’s throat. 

Major corporations have been scrambling to donate huge sums of money to Black Lives Matter as the sometimes-violent protests have continued. Some of the donations have been astronomical: The Korean pop band BTS donated $1 million to the group earlier this month, and their fans quickly matched that amount with another $1 million donation.

Yet those donations do not go straight to Black Lives Matter. Rather, they first pass through ActBlue Charities, a fundraising group that bankrolls Democratic and progressive political efforts across the country. The group offers users a suite of fundraising tools, including data analytics, support services and customized contribution forms, to facilitate donor solicitation efforts.