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Folks, MFF was a tiny volunteer team before the protests started. It's going to take them a while to come to grips with their huge new influx of cash and how to manage it. Listen to the people who have worked in nonprofits, not people being loud and wrong about what they assume. https://twitter.com/MNFreedomFund/status/1272888415508402179
I'm seeing demands for them to "set up a simple Google doc" showing where the money is going, and that's just not...how this works, with this much money. Someone has to DO that data entry, and turn it into a report that's useful to anyone
Transparency is good, but listen to experts who can tell you what level of transparency to expect from an organization and how long that might take. Comparing it to the PTA is all well and good, but the PTA doesn't have a budget in the multi-millions.
Also, yes, they have to do all the steps in data entry recording all those donations, and cross every t and dot ever i, because you bet your ass they're going to get audited. Don't rush them. It's been less than a month.
Lol at the people saying "fire your PR person!!" They don't...have one. They don't have employees! Also seeing demands they hire a PR person. Okay...but that takes time too. Setting up an employee structure. Getting applications, interviewing, hiring. People sound ridiculous.
They've gotten a very serious windfall, and legally they need to spend it on their stated mission. The people of Minnesota are better off with an organization that's financially healthy and has a strong start to work from for many, many years to come.
Would you rather they blow $35 million as quickly as possible, or invest most of it in a longer-haul strategy that winds up benefiting more people in the long run? Because I'd suggest the latter.
Also, apparently Ian Miles Cheong is part of the outcry in this case. Are you fucking kidding me? Don't listen to that asshole. He's an alt-right troll. He doesn't want bail funds to succeed, he wants to sink them
ALSO, seeing well-meaning people say they should be releasing lists of people they're helping. Folks...do you want the world to have a handy list of every protester they've bailed out? Employers to have another resource to check for records of someone being jailed? Please think.
Last thing on this: a lot of those unhappy seem to be mad that their money might benefit other prisoners besides those arrested in the protests. To which I say...go suck eggs. They're a bail fund, that existed before this started. They never claimed to be only for protesters.
Now, does this mean you shouldn't expect any accountability? No, of course not. But give them some reasonable time to get their affairs in order, listen to experts, and don't listen to anyone telling you what they "should" be able to do who doesn't work in that sphere
And most importantly, beware of fascist trolls trying to sow the seeds of destruction and in-fighting. They hate this movement and they want it to fail. Be alert.
Anyway in summary, it's incredible that they're getting this kind of backlash when Shaun King is still just...out there, operating.
And if you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a good place to start. https://www.thedailybeast.com/shaun-king-keeps-raising-money-and-questions-about-where-it-goes-3
