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Stopping Juvenile Detention: Al Sharpton and the National Action Network: Why Do Corporations, the Media, Democrats (and some Republicans) Play Along? By Fred Lucas Summary: Once reviled as a racial dem- agogue, the Rev. Al Sharpton has trans- formed himself into a national statesman— in his own eyes. Why do major American corporations, national politicians and the news media agree with him? he scene: the Sheraton Hotel in New TYork City last April. The guests: Big Media personalities such as CNN’s Larry King, ABC’s Robin Roberts, and NBC’s Matt Lauer, executives from Pep- siCo and Wal-Mart, Andy Stern of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich. The corporate sponsors: Johnson & John- son, American Honda, Anheuser-Busch, Colgate-Palmolive, Comcast, Pfi zer and Home Depot. Bashing Republicans: RNC chairman Michael Steele dropped by the annual con- vention of Rev. Al Sharpton’s National Action Network last month. Both leaders The occasion: The four-day 11th Annual criticized the GOP. (photo: dailycaller.com) Convention of the National Action Network national trade and whom he would appoint investigating NAN’s fi nancial dealings (NAN), a “Christian activist organization,” to chair the Federal Reserve Board while the year before and subpoenaed Anheuser- according to its tax forms, whose founder and standing at a podium alongside Senators John Busch for its records of charitable gifts to president is the Rev. Al Sharpton. Kerry, Joe Lieberman and John Edwards, and the nonprofi t, a move Sharpton criticized former Governor Howard Dean, Gen. Wesley as a “fi shing expedition.” According to These days Al Sharpton has trimmed down Clark and Rep. Dennis Kucinich. and shaped up. He no longer wears jumpsuits and gold medallions around his neck. His May 2010 Last year, New York magazine put Sharpton bouffant hair is slicked back and his rheto- on its list of the city’s “Power Dozen,” which CONTENTS ric is toned-down. Once reviled as a racial included Mayor Michael Bloomberg and demagogue, he now receives the deference publisher Rupert Murdoch. When Sharpton of politicians. Sharpton will probably never Al Sharpton and the threw himself a 55th birthday party, Mayor live down the Tawana Brawley case of the late National Action Network Bloomberg and New York Governor David 1980s, but in 2004 he ran for the Democratic Page 1 Patterson came to offer him their congratula- Party’s presidential nomination, where he tions and acknowledge his stature and infl u- participated in nationally televised primary ence. However, one notable was missing. Philanthropy Notes debates. He answered questions about inter- Attorney General Andrew Cuomo began Page 6 FoundationWatch its website, Anheuser-Busch contributed a negative fund balance of $2 million and The National Legal and Policy Center between $100,000 and $499,000 to NAN faced more than $1 million dollars in pend- (NLPC), a government and corporate watch- in 2007 alone. (New York Post, June 19, ing tax liens. In May 2008, the Associated dog group, wasn’t so sure. In 2006 and 2007 2008) Press reported that Sharpton and his business NLPC sponsored a shareholder proposal to entities owed $1.5 million in back taxes: The require PepsiCo to disclose all its charitable Before Barack Obama became president, IRS got a lien of $931,397 against Sharpton giving and provide to its shareholders a Sharpton vied with Rev. Jesse Jackson to for unpaid personal income taxes. New York business rationale for each gift. PepsiCo be perceived as the most prominent spokes- City said he owed $365,558 in municipal management opposed the proposal, which man for black America and the conscience taxes, and New York State said his company, failed. of the civil rights movement. He was the Rev. Al Communications, owed $175,962 master of ceremonies at memorial services in state tax. In July 2008, Sharpton worked Last fall, PepsiCo shareholders tried again. for soul singer James Brown in 2006 and out a deal with federal prosecutors, agreeing They wrote the company’s management and pop star Michael Jackson in 2009. He has to pay back $1 million out of at least $1.8 asked why it continued to give money to claimed credit for preventing Rush Limbaugh million he owed in back taxes, according to the National Action Network. PepsiCo lists from purchasing part of an NFL team and news reports. (Mainstreaming Demagoguery, a 2008 contribution to NAN of “$10,000 for (temporarily) running Don Imus off the NLPC, May 14, 2009) or less.” (See http://www.pepsico.com/ airwaves. Purpose/Corporate-Contributions/Division- Sharpton and NAN continue to attract pub- Giving-2008.html.) The website of Sharpton’s National Action lic attention and corporate money. But one Network says, “The NAN works within the wonders how he manages to ignore media PepsiCo’s bland response: “As a global spirit and tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King, reports and defy court orders while continu- consumer products company that serves Jr. to promote a modern civil rights agenda ing to attract large corporate contributions. all people, we support many not-for-profi t that includes the fi ght for social justice and For an organization that frequently supports organizations with a variety of missions. The one standard of justice and decency for all anti-business policies and has a messy history leaders of these organizations may at times people regardless of race, religion, national of handling its own fi nances, what makes have points of view that do not necessarily origin, and gender.” With 45 chapters na- Sharpton’s National Action Network so ap- represent those of PepsiCo. I want to assure tionwide, NAN’s provocative motto is “No pealing to Corporate America? you that this Company does not endorse Justice, No Peace.” those individual viewpoints, political or PepsiCo, Wal-Mart, MGM: No Funding, otherwise.” (NLPC, Oct. 19, 2009) Yet all is not as it appears. The fi nances of No Peace the National Action Network are shaky. In 2009 NAN was proud to give its Corpo- PepsiCo is just one of many major American The group’s 2007 tax return shows it had rate Excellence Award to Maurice Cox, the corporations that participate in the National PepsiCo Vice President for Diversity and Action Network’s “Madison Avenue Initia- Editor: Matthew Vadum Inclusion Development. tive.” NAN describes the Initiative this way: Publisher: Terrence Scanlon What a difference a decade made. In June Foundation Watch 1998, Al Sharpton was complaining that “In 1999, in a united voice with African- is published by Capital Research Pepsico did not feature African-Americans American advertising agencies and market- Center, a non-partisan education and in its commercials, and he threatened to ing and media outlets, he [Sharpton] launched research organization, classifi ed by call for a consumer boycott of all Pepsi the ‘Madison Avenue Initiative’ (MAI) to the IRS as a 501(c)(3) public charity. products, including Frito Lay, Tropicana, ensure that those who do business with and Quaker Oats. The boycott never took advertising outlets around the country deal Address: 1513 16th Street, N.W. place. Instead, PepsiCo hired Sharpton as even-handedly with agencies, media outlets Washington, DC 20036-1480 a consultant for $25,000 a year and it put and publications run by people of color,” the him on its African-American advisory board NAN website says. Phone: (202) 483-6900 where he served until 2007. (New York Post, Long-Distance: (800) 459-3950 June 15, 2008) “Sharpton’s work with the MAI has targeted E-mail Address: major corporations, including PepsiCo, Col- [email protected] Had the job and Pepsico donations to NAN gate-Palmolive, Microsoft, and others, who compromised Sharpton’s criticisms or have subsequently extended their advertising Web Site: persuaded him to end his boycott threat? dollars to reach more of African-American http://www.capitalresearch.org Sharpton insisted that they had not made and Hispanic communities.” Organization Trends welcomes let- him less aggressive in his pursuit of social ters to the editor. justice. “Just because Pepsi and other com- Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest retailer, is panies had me on their board advising them another NAN corporate contributor. It has Reprints are available for $2.50 pre- paid to Capital Research Center. didn’t mean that I wasn’t blasting them all contributed annually to Sharpton’s group the time,” said Sharpton. since 2005. As a result, the company that 2 May 2010 FoundationWatch many on the Left love to hate has received no from General Motors, a GM spokesman closes additional diffi culties. It suggests that grief from Sharpton. Instead, Esther Silver- told the New York Post. Then, in December NAN’s corporate funders support, at the very Parker, Senior Vice President of Diversity 2006, Sharpton threatened to call a boycott least, a fi nancially troubled organization that Relations for Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., received because the company had closed an African- may be teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. the Corporate Executive of Excellence Award American owned GM dealership in the More worrisome is the possibility that major at the NAN convention last April. Bronx. He even led a demonstration outside American corporations sustain a corrupt GM’s New York headquarters building. In nonprofi t that misuses its contributions to In 2006, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, an ardent 2007 and 2008, GM gave NAN $5,000, but sustain its founder’s political ambitions and Wal-Mart critic, accused the retail giant it was not listed as a sponsor of the 2009 personal vanity. of trying to “throw money at us” to buy NAN convention. Jackson’s silence. Sharpton said that didn’t In 2007, a year before the nationwide fi nancial happen in his case.

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