After the wildfires in California earlier this year, a fundraising event called ‘FireAid’ was held with support from state leaders, Hollywood celebrities, and musicians. The event raised $100 million, which organizers said would be given directly to wildfire victims.
Several weeks ago, an independent journalist reported that none of the wildfire victims had received any money. According to her investigation, the funds were instead distributed to various non-profit organizations.
A further investigation by the Washington Free Beacon found that some recipient non-profits were not connected to fire recovery efforts and limited their assistance based on race. For example, Greenline Housing Foundation received funds from a $4.8 million pool dedicated to health and housing. On its website, the group stated: “In order to qualify for a grant through Greenline Housing Foundation, applicants must be a Black or Hispanic person.”
The Black Freedom Fund also received money from a $7.6 million pool intended for disaster relief. In a 2023 grant proposal document, the organization stated it would only assist groups “led and controlled by Black people” and “primarily serving Black people.” My Tribe Rise, another recipient founded in 2019, described its mission as “to take the stigma out of gangs and to educate people about the positive changes that are possible when people come together to end violence and meet the needs of Black and Brown communities.”
Other groups supported by FireAid reportedly offer assistance to undocumented immigrants in California.
Some have criticized Governor Gavin Newsom’s response to these developments. The press release stated: “This is disgraceful, and it’s also why Gavin Newsom would rather spend his time trolling Trump on Twitter/X, because that gives the media something to talk about regarding Newsom without having to address this scandal.”
The statement concluded: “It really looks like FireAid was nothing more than a progressive scam on the donors to the event.”
