When philanthropy meets hypocrisy…..
By: Lamar Mickens
Tags: Philanthropy, Donations, Giving, Nonprofit

Like homelessness — or even jobs. Or economic development that could create jobs and reduce / eliminate homelessness and poverty.

Instead, most philanthropic organizations that are major recipients such as nonprofits and grant-makers spend money on what I call “social image projects” that look good; but in the long run — actually still benefit the wealthy grant maker and or their associates in one form or another.

Here’s an example:

Let’s say, a grant-maker that is the founder and most likely the CEO of his own family or corporate grant making foundation and he owns some very expensive art. What does he do? He pretends to donate his art to a museum. And not just any museum — he goes off and uses the grant money from his foundation to fund a museum that now houses his art! The hypocrisy!

Now, he can also use that museum to buy, trade, or loan / borrow art from other museums or people he knows that have “art” that they can display at his museum.

In essence, the museum literally becomes a private vault for his art, or for family members, friends colleagues and or associates that “deal” in art as well…

Plus, he can even charge friends and others for showing, storing or even auctioning art through the museum directly — or as part of an elaborate fund-raising / tax dodging scheme…All which is tax deductible at the end of the day!!!

This type of structured arrangement is what I call “social philanthropy” giving the appearance of doing a philanthropic deed— (building a museum and stockpiling it with art) when in fact, that person, his family and close / friends and or associates are enriching themselves with the museum.

Buying / selling art, hosting exhibits, trading art or artifacts, sponsoring / hosting dinner fundraisers — and using the proceeds to buy more art, artifacts, even expand the museum. Including even selling art or trading between museums for again, enrichment purposes.

Another example of social philanthropy is the owner of a software company and also head a grant making foundation. The foundation launches a national drive to upgrade education for public schools.

The foundation raises billions of dollars — and the first thing they (foundation) do is purchase more than 1 million computers for some 90,000 schools.

The school get’s the computers and the foundation gets money too — because it owns the software company whose software is installed on all of those computers!!!

The goal next year — raise more than $100 million dollars for more computers…Because the owner knows that the more computers the schools get — the more money he gets too-(remember that software)?

Now, when you use that theory about social philanthropy apply it to corporations and wealthy families that also head major nonprofit organizations, foundations and charitable trusts…

They-(the rich) can fund just about anything socially, religiously, economically, politically, environmentally, etc.. All they have to do is “start a foundation” and pretend to be championing a cause. All the while, parking and stockpiling their money in there-(foundation / trust).

Better than a bank

Why get a loan? Or store your money in a bank? When you virtually have your own private / shadow bank so to speak? One that is virtually unregulated, hiding in plain site and has hundreds, thousands an maybe even millions of depositors-(donors)?

Allowing you (foundation) to make loans, get loans, structure investments, acquisitions, mergers, etc.. Virtually unlimited — and all legal! You want five mansions — you can: Simply call them satellite offices, regional headquarter sites, retreats or campuses — all pwned and controlled by “the foundation”.

How about an equestrian ranch with thoroughbred horses? You can. Call it an equestrian center of animal-(horse) refuge. Include veterinarian facilities, riding trails, bunkhouses and you have your own private / horse breeding ranch making a profit….

Steering the revenues into the foundation’s accounts — going into other / multiple accounts for other investments, etc… Again, the hypocrisy of it all”…

Better than an offshore bank

Remember what I said about art and artifacts earlier? Now let’s get back to that…

Your foundation has amassed billions of dollars and you direct this money-(an insignificant / significant) potion towards education and the arts….

So, you spend frugally in those areas because you have plans to use the bulk of that money for investments to “ensure the financial stability” and perpetuity of your foundation-(your private / shadow bank).

You form an accounting firm here, a law firm there, a hedge fund here….All the while you circumvent the greater portions of those revenues from these business to your foundation’s account — still calling them donations / contributions. And for the most part, legally, they are!

So, to keep up appearances and not to draw suspicion to yourself, all you really have to do from time to time is fund a few things that appear to be aligned, or in league with your philanthropic philosophy…

Like, fund a museum here….

Or a library there….

Occasionally, they may shell out for a daycare center-(new build and or renovation). But mainly they (grant makers) usually do an after-school program or daycare food program…Much cheaper, less attention — but great publicity and notoriety…