When Elena Iliadis searched for "Black Lives Matter" on GoFundMe, the popular online fundraising platform, she didn't do much research on the first verified foundation that popped up.
Inspired to help the cause, the 19-year-old Georgetown University sophomore and her a capella group, the Phantoms, raised nearly $1,100 for what they thought was the global movement to bring racial justice and defund the police. It wasn't until she was contacted by BuzzFeed News that the student learned her group had been collecting money for a completely unaffiliated cause.
While Black Lives Matter has morphed from a 2013 hashtag following the acquittal of Trayvon Martin's killer into an international movement, its early lack of centralized leadership or formal hierarchy left opportunities for copycats like Barnes' foundation. Based on estimates from BuzzFeed News, donors raised at least $4.35 million for the Black Lives Matter Foundation in the first weeks of June, though the bulk of that was frozen before it could be disbursed. In some cases, companies including GoFundMe were unaware the foundation had no affiliation with the wider movement and froze funds only after being contacted by BuzzFeed News.
In a statement to BuzzFeed News, a Black Lives Matter spokesperson confirmed that the groups are indeed "two completely separate organizations" and that Barnes' foundation "has nothing to do with us."
"The Santa Clarita group is improperly using our name," the spokesperson said. "We intend to call them out and follow up."
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