President Barack Obama is set to headline Al Sharpton’s National Action Network (NAN) conference that is being held in New York April 9th through April 12th.
The Sharpton conference ostensibly is to “honor” the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. Organizers claim that the event is not just for honoring King but for “proactively engaging in dialogue that will spawn change.”
Al Sharpton founded NAN in 1991 when he was but a community agitator in New York, long before he became an MSNBC TV host. For his work with the organization, NAN paid Sharpton nearly $250,000 in 2011.
But the organization has had numerous money problems and has even been investigated by the federal government. In 2006, the IRS fined the organization for not properly reporting its taxes. It still owes $1.9 million in back taxes and penalties.
Sharpton has also used his position in NAN to shake down several corporations for donations. To get the cash, Sharpton repeatedly issued veiled threats in which he promised not to boycott the companies–in exchange for donations.
Al Sharpton was convicted of defamation for his criminal actions during the Tawana Brawley rape hoax. Four years later, he founded NAN. That same year, the community agitator went on to inflame the Crown Heights riots.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston or email the author at igcolonel@hotmail.com.
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