As riots shook cities across the United States in 2020, then-Sen. Kamala Harris authored a little-known blog post urging the public to help demonstrators “on the front lines” by donating to a bail fund that freed violent criminals.
The blog post, which Harris published on her Medium profile on May 31, 2020, came amid riots in Minneapolis and other major cities following the death of George Floyd. Harris, now the vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, asked readers in the post to contribute to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, which bailed murderers and serial domestic abusers out of jail. Harris is still fundraising on behalf of the controversial charity, according to an ActBlue software page.
“I stand with those protesting George Floyd’s murder and recognize the crucial importance of fighting police brutality, demanding racial justice, and dismantling the very systems that lead to these injustices,” Harris wrote in the blog post. “So today, in solidarity with those protesting, I am asking for your help if you are able: Will you make a contribution to the Minnesota Freedom Fund, an organization working on the ground in Minnesota to post bail for arrested protestors?”
“The horrific killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery are not isolated incidents but the result of broader systemic racism in our country,” Harris, who added that she stood in “solidarity” with demonstrators, wrote at the time. “These protests will continue until those who murdered George Floyd are held accountable. So until then, the protestors on the front lines need our help.”
News of the 2020 blog post comes as former President Donald Trump hammers Harris on the 2024 campaign trail over her support for the bail fund. Harris, in June 2020, famously posted on social media, “If you’re able to, chip in now to the @MNFreedomFund to help post bail for those protesting on the ground in Minnesota.” Among others, the bail fund freed Shawn Michael Tillman of St. Paul, who was sentenced to life in prison this year for first- and second-degree murder, court records show.
“Kamala Harris raised money for rioters while Minneapolis burned,” Karoline Leavitt, a spokeswoman for the Trump campaign, told the Washington Examiner. “Her fundraising efforts helped free murderers and rapists. She should be ashamed and apologize for this, but she won’t because she loves criminals.”
The bail fund, moreover, freed George Howard, who pleaded guilty last year to second-degree murder for shooting and killing a man in 2021 in Minneapolis. Others who were freed in connection to the bail fund include Darnika Floyd, who was sentenced to prison in 2021 after being charged for second-degree murder in 2018, and serial domestic abusers.
The fund, according to an August 2020 report, paid $350,000 to release twice-convicted rapist Christopher Boswell.
With the help of Harris, the Minnesota Freedom Fund helped raise over $41 million in 2020, tax records show. Before Harris lent the nonprofit group a hand in 2020, and Floyd’s prior death, the MFF had a small budget of just $230,000 and could only afford an average bail of $342.
Once the money rolled in, that quickly changed. The average bail that the MFF could afford skyrocketed to $13,000, according to reports.
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In a recent statement, the Minnesota Freedom Fund said Harris has never donated to it and that they “have no relationship beyond a single four-year old tweet.”
The Harris campaign did not return a request for comment.
