Prominent BLM activist behind iconoclastic rally jailed for defrauding donors to fund her lavish lifestyle

A prominent BLM activist who helped organized a British statue-toppling protest in 2020 has been sentenced to over two years in jail for defrauding donors.

Xahra Saleem, 23, set up a GoFundMe campaign ahead of an iconoclastic Bristol rally, begging strangers for the equivalent of a few hundred dollars to help purchase personal protective equipment to ensure that the mob — that would ultimately go on to illegally tear down the statue of Edward Colston and throw it into the harbor on June 7 — was properly masked. Owing to the publicity around the protest, the fundraising campaign was a huge success, bringing in nearly $40,000.

The BBC reported that it was made abundantly clear to donors that the excess funds raised would go to Changing Your Mindset Ltd., a now-defunct youth-based charity that had appointed Saleem its director. However, rather than have this money go to help British youths, Saleem transferred the cash to her personal bank accounts and burned through it between June 2020 and September 2021.

Judge Michael Longman told Saleem that whereas the charity the funds were intended for was a "worthwhile cause," she instead frittered away the funds on herself for a lifestyle she "could not otherwise have afforded."

Among the 2,512 payments she made, drawing on donors' funds, Saleem bought an iPhone, an iMac, and luxury clothing. She also treated herself to hair and beauty treatments, various Amazon purchases, takeout, and over $7,000 in Uber rides.

When it seemed the funds and fun were coming to an end, Saleem admitted to a friend over WhatsApp that she had done "something horrendous," reported the Independent.

Members of the organization issued an ultimatum in June 2021, demanding that Saleem transfer the funds. In response, Saleem admitted to blowing the dough, but suggested her undiagnosed psychosis was to blame, writing, "I am so sorry, I am still trying to understand my actions as well."

Saleem's fraud and deceit resulted in a cancellation of a once-in-a-lifetime educational trip to Africa and finally the closure of Changing Your Mindset.

"We were led on a journey of deceit which was full of lies and left us having to clear our own names and stop the group sessions," the organization told the Independent.

Longman emphasized to Saleem, "Your dishonest behavior continued for a substantial amount of time. There were a large number of victims. You must have realized how much your behavior would affect so many people," reported National Review.

Prominent activists in the BLM movement appear to have a tendency to grossly benefit from their supposed philanthropy on both sides of the Atlantic.

In 2021, Tyree Conyers-Page was hit with three counts of money laundering and one count of wire fraud for allegedly creating a "Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta" Facebook page and using it to defraud donors out of $450,000. His trial has been delayed until April 2024.

FBI Special Agent in Charge Eric B. Smith said, "Page allegedly purchased homes, traveled, and spent other people's money to buy luxury items for himself, all on the backs of hardworking people believing they were donating to a worthy cause. The FBI will continue efforts to root out fraudsters who victimize our fellow citizens for personal gain."

Following the alleged fraudster's arrest, GoFundMe indicated it would refund donations.

Blaze News previously reported that BLM activists Monica Cannon-Grant and her husband, Clark Grant, were charged with 18 federal counts in connection to their nonprofit organization, Violence in Boston. They allegedly raised over $1 million but spent a significant portion on themselves. Among the alleged expenditures were personal travel and hotel reservations, nail salon appointments, and nights out.

WPDE-TV reported in May that federal tax filings from 2020 to 2022 revealed only $30 million of the $90 million Black Lives Matter raised went to other charitable organizations. $22 million went to expenses. $1.6 million went to BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors' father for security service. $2.1 million went to BLM board member Shalomyah Bowers for consulting.

Following reports that BLM co-founders Cullors, Alicia Graza, and Melina Abudullah treated themselves to a $6 million mansion in Southern California with donation money, activists filed suit, alleging this purchase and other expenditures amounted to fraud. Their suit was dismissed in June by a judge who concluded their "complaint fails to sufficiently allege the how, when, where, to whom, and by what means" misrepresentations were tendered.

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