Southern Poverty Law Center Faces Federal Indictment Over Alleged Donor Fund Misuse
The Southern Poverty Law Center faces federal fraud charges for allegedly misusing donor funds. The organization, founded in 1971, has a history of civil rights litigation but has faced prior criticism for financial practices. The indictment follows decades of scrutiny over its operations and expenditures.
foxnews.comThe Southern Poverty Law Center was indicted on federal fraud charges this week for allegedly abusing donor dollars, the Washington Examiner reported. , both Alabama attorneys. It originated from a 1970 class action lawsuit titled Smith v.
Young Men’s Christian Association of Montgomery, filed by Morris Dees on behalf of two black children denied entry to a YMCA summer camp in Montgomery. In that case, a federal court ruled that the Montgomery YMCA was excluding black patrons and ordered it to end discriminatory practices. Morris Dees won the Smith v.
Dees and Levin formally incorporated the Southern Poverty Law Center in 1971 as a 501(c)(3) charity based in Montgomery, Alabama. Julian Bond was named the first president of the Southern Poverty Law Center soon after its 1971 incorporation.
Julian Bond later became chairman of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Over ensuing decades, the Southern Poverty Law Center bankrupted the United Klans of America. The Southern Poverty Law Center also bankrupted the Aryan Nations over those decades.
Morris Dees was fired from the Southern Poverty Law Center in 2019 for misconduct. In 1994, the Montgomery Advertiser published an investigative series on the Southern Poverty Law Center.
It also found that the Southern Poverty Law Center poorly treated its minority employees. According to the 1994 Montgomery Advertiser report, the Southern Poverty Law Center raised roughly $62 million in donations and spent about $21 million on programs from 1984 to 1994.
