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A federal grand jury in Montgomery, Alabama, has indicted the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) on 11 counts of “wire fraud, false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering,” the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Tuesday.
Between the years 2014 and 2023, SPLC was charged with having funneled more than $3 million in donated funds to recipients associated with violent extremist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan, Aryan Nations, and the National Socialist Party of America.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement that the SPLC has been “manufacturing racism to justify its existence.”
“Using donor money to allegedly profit off Klansmen cannot go unchecked,” Blanche said. “This Department of Justice will hold the SPLC and every other fraudulent organization operating with the same deceptive playbook accountable. No entity is above the law.”
FBI Director Kash Patel explained as well that the SPLC “allegedly engaged in a massive fraud operation to deceive their donors, enrich themselves, and hide their deceptive operations from the public.”
“They lied to their donors, vowing to dismantle violent extremist groups, and actually turned around and paid the leaders of these very extremist groups – even utilizing the funds to have these groups facilitate the commission of state and federal crimes,” Patel highlighted. “That is illegal – and this is an ongoing investigation against all individuals involved.”
In 2017, for example, actor George Clooney and his wife Amal touted their donation of $1 million to SPLC to fight “bigotry and hate.”
“We are proud to support the Southern Poverty Law Center in its efforts to prevent violent extremism in the United States,” the couple said, according to Deadline at the time.
The DOJ revealed how the SPLC allegedly operated:
In order to covertly pay the individuals, the SPLC opened bank accounts connected to a series of fictitious entities. The covert nature of the accounts allowed the SPLC to disguise the true nature, source, ownership, and control of the fraudulently obtained donated money the SPLC paid the individuals. In order to keep the scheme going, the SPLC made a series of false statements related to the operation of the accounts.
“A conviction will result in the forfeiture of financial gains from the alleged illegal activities,” DOJ notes.
SPLC is a non-profit organization based in Montgomery whose mission, according to its website, is to be “a beacon of hope, fighting white supremacy and various forms of injustice to help create a multiracial democracy where we can all live and thrive.”
One of the group’s primary activities has been what it refers to as “tracking hate” with its interactive map that “tracks hate and anti-government groups.”
“In 2023, we tracked 835 antigovernment groups and 595 hate groups, totaling 1,430 hate and extremist groups,” SPLC touts, adding that, in 2024, the organization identified 1,371 total number of hate and anti-government groups.
For example, SPLC promotes LGBT activism and, so, opposes gender “detransition narratives.”
Accordingly, the organization has named groups such as Genspect and Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), the latter of which scored a victory in March at the U.S. Supreme Court when an 8-1 decision affirmed that voluntary discussions in therapy sessions about the reality of biological sex cannot be banned.
One group that welcomed the indictment of SPLC is the Christian pro-family organization Family Research Council (FRC) – long named to SPLC’s “hate map” as being “anti-gay.”
FRC President Tony Perkins said in a statement that “[f]or years, the SPLC has used its platform to label and target organizations with whom it disagrees, often blurring the line between legitimate concern and ideological attack.”
“That kind of reckless characterization doesn’t just damage reputations, it has put lives at risk,” Perkins added, noting that FRC itself experienced a gunman who had “entered our building over a decade ago, citing SPLC’s materials.”
“We’ve talked with the FBI to help them understand how these designations have real-world consequences,” Perkins said. “That’s why this moment matters. Accountability should not stop with individual convictions. If wrongdoing is proven, justice should include restitution to those harmed.”
“With over $750 million in their endowment which includes offshore accounts, the SPLC should be held responsible not only for what was done, but for the damage left behind,” he added.
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