EXCLUSIVE: Crowdfunding for a Killer Cop; Would You Contribute?
April 9 (Gephardt Daily) – Crowdfunding serves many purposes, by right now it’s in the news because of highly controversial and enigmatic efforts to raise funds in support of Michael T. Slager, the Patrolman in North Charleston who was caught on video tape shooting a fleeing, unarmed man in the back and possibly planting a weapon near by his body.
Crowdfunding, the practice of funding a project or venture by raising monetary contributions from a large number of people, typically via the internet, is a major trend that has funded things ranging from “An Hour of Code For Every Student,” a campaign operating under the mantra that “Every student in every school should have the opportunity to learn computer science,” which has currently raises $5,022,221, to a recent campaign by actors Nathan Fillion and Alan Tudyk to fund a new science fiction comedy series.
Despite an intense backlash, Indiegogo.com is refusing to remove a campaign on their site raising funds for Slager, initiated by an unidentified person going under the user name “R Owens.”
“Indiegogo allows anyone, anywhere to fund ideas that matter to them and just like other open platforms — such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter — we don’t judge the content of campaigns as long as they are in compliance with our Terms of Use,” a spokesman for the company said in a statement.
The campaign is attempting to raise $5,000. Since yesterday, they have reached $393, mostly from donors who are remaining anonymous (though a donor who gave an undisclosed amount used the user name “Trayvon.”).
Another popular site, GoFundMe, doesn’t seem to share Indiegogo’s views.
Think Progress reported that GoFundMe removed a similar campaign on their site.
“After review by our team, the campaign set up for Officer Slager was removed from GoFundMe due to a violation of our Terms and Conditions,” Kelsea Little, GoFundMe’s public relations manager, told ThinkProgress via email.
The question raised here is: when did crowd funding become about making a political statement instead of raising money to achieve a goal? Indiegogo’s campaign gives literally no indication of where this money is going. Is it going to help Slager’s pregnant wife? Is it going to help pay his legal costs? (The latter would seem implausible, as Slager is likely to either be assigned a public defender or requite a lawyer that spends more than $5,000 on a business lunch.).
The campaign’s statement of purpose is as follows: “We’re campaigning to show our Support for Officer Michael T. Slager! We believe in all of our LEOs and want to publicly support them! Although he may have made mis-steps in judgement he was protecting the community. Michael is a former Coast Guardsman with two stepchildren and a wife who is expecting a child, served for more than five years with the department without being disciplined. Please help in any way you can. He has served five years with the department without being disciplined.”
That may qualify as a statement of belief, but it doesn’t explain the purpose. The question remains: is crowd-funding becoming more about making a statement than trying to support an actual project? And if so, aren’t 5,000 signatures just a good as $5,000 dollars?
The answer may be known only to the person who is spending that money.
