This morning I received an email from Shaun King’s North Star mailing list with the following subject line:
Here are the usernames & passwords to all of my bank accounts + the past 5 years of my tax returns.
The body of the email read like this:
| Good morning everyone, I hope you are doing well. No, I haven’t been hacked. I am sending this to you first. We formed an expert 7 person financial review panel to analyze every single penny I’ve raised since the Black Lives Matter Movement began. I provided the panel with the past 5 years of my tax returns, full access to the past 10 years of my checking, savings, and retirement accounts (literally with usernames and passwords), full access to our credit cards, and money management software, as well as full access to every fundraiser, and every family, and every charity and campaign I’ve supported during this time. It was a bit humiliating to do it this way, but now it’s done. They produced this transparent 72 page page report of their findings. I am proud of the report, its conclusions, the testimonials, and so much more. I’ve helped raise $34.5 million for social good these past 5 years and here is a methodical accounting of all of it – with videos, images, hard data, records, and more. Since we launched our Flip the Senate campaign 2 weeks ago, and since Rihanna announced I was being honored at the Diamond Ball in 2 weeks, the attacks and fabrications have been fierce and damaging. To the people who hate me, this report, and all of its facts, will mean nothing. The facts never really mattered to them. This report is for you. Here are our ACTION STEPS. 1. Please read it. It’s my life and work in digital form. And hundreds of thousands of you reading this are in there. Those are your donor dollars at work. 2. Please share it. In your own words. Share the link on social media. Share the infographic. Share the testimonials. Share screenshots. Share it via text with your friends and network. But let’s let people know the truth. Thank you all for your support and encouragement. Let’s keep on pushing for good. Love y’all. Your friend and brother, Shaun & Family |
Shaun King has to be the most controversial social justice activist and journalist of our time. There has always been a huge conversation around Shaun King’s ethnicity, with many claiming both of his parents are white. However, Shaun maintains that his father is Black.
In high school, Shaun was the victim of a violent assault at his school, an attack he says stemmed from his identity as a mixed Black kid. I have actually read detailed pieces from Shaun’s old classmates who support his statements.
For almost a decade, Shaun King has been at the forefront of sharing the atrocities that happen to Black Americans daily under white supremacy. So much so, that he has garnered millions of followers across social media platforms including Twitter and Instagram. Followers which include many celebrities and famous people. These people lean on Shaun Kings updates about what’s happening in the world, especially to Black America.
Personally, I respect Shaun Kings journey and platform. What he continues to build is an independent journalist dream. Once he garnered a massive following, he crowdfunded to relaunch The North Star, a newspaper founded by Fredrick Douglas of the same name. With these funds, Shaun was able to open a studio and launch his podcast as well as the news subscription service The North Star.
Shaun King did all this, in the midst of extreme controversy; people calling him another Rachel Dolezar, and numerous Black women saying that he steals their work and ideas.
Many point to his previous fundraising efforts that had nothing to do with social justice, along with his days of running a small church after graduating from Morehouse.
With Rihanna announcing Shaun will be honored at her Diamond Ball in two weeks, the Shaun King hate has only intensified. People are continuing to claim Shaun has taken funds he raised for the victims of white supremacy for his own personal use.
The report into Shaun’s fundraising is authored by Tamika Mallory, Co-Chair of The Women’s March and Co-Founder of Justice League NYC; Becky Bond, partner at The Social Practice; Tiffany Hawkins and Allan Boomer, financial experts with Momentum Advisors; Rob Smith, attorney and executive for The Justice Collaborative; David Mitrani, attorney for Sandler Reiff; and Lee Merritt, civil rights attorney — with the support of CPA and tax attorney Richard Bell.
Does Shaun King steal work from Black women? I have no clue. I know this is what Black women are saying and I always try to support Black women because too often our voices, experiences and claims are deemed invalid.
Is Shaun King half Black? Is not for me to say. But the truth is out there for people who want to end this part of the controversy.
Has Shaun King taken money from the movement? Look through his info graphic and report to determine yourself. He has taken the necessary steps to be transparent.
https://medium.com/@shaunkingfinancialreivewboard/shaun-king-financial-report-318661d97125
Although unrelated, one thing that does bother me about Shaun King, is that he continues to push Bernie Sanders down Black Americans throats, when Bernie has said he does NOT support reparations for African Americans. As a Jewish man. Yea, in that moment Bernie was canceled.
Now, Bernie says he supports reparations for American descendants of slavery all of a sudden.
Which is interesting, because people claim if you try and ask Bernie about Black people and Reparations at one of his rallies, you will be escorted away by secret service.
