Bankrolling Mayhem: How the Radical Left Pays for Violence and Recruits the Next Generation
From immigration riots to anti-police uprisings, America’s cities are being torn apart, not just by ideology, but by a well funded, digitally coordinated machine. The radical left isn’t just paying for violence, they’re also grooming young people to carry it out.
The 2020 riots following George Floyd’s death marked a turning point. Cities like Portland, Minneapolis, and Seattle saw sustained violence led by Antifa-linked groups. The Capitol Hill Occupied Protest (CHOP) in Seattle cost the city $3.65 million in legal settlements alone. Emergency services were blocked, businesses looted, and residents terrorized. Portland reported $2 million in police overtime in a single month. Minneapolis faced $500 million in property damage. These weren’t grassroots uprisings like Democrats would like you to believe. These were organized and funded by the left with the sole purpose of inciting fear and making it appear that their movement is much stronger and more wide spread than it is in reality.
The Anti-ICE riots in Los Angeles have cost taxpayers Over $32 million, with $29 million spent on LAPD tactical alerts and emergency response. Protesters used commercial grade fireworks, Molotov cocktails, and coordinated social media campaigns. Groups like CHIRLA, which received $34 million in public funding ( thank you Joe Biden), are under investigation for supporting activities that obstruct immigration enforcement. Some demonstrators were flown in, housed in hotels, equipped with professional props and instructed to riot , loot and burn.
The assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is exposing the ideological grooming taking place in online chat platforms. The suspected killer, Tyler Robinson, allegedly confessed in a Discord chat just hours before turning himself in. The FBI is now investigating over 20 individuals in that chat group on whether others encouraged or knew about the attack. Discord, originally a gaming platform, has become a breeding ground for radicalization. Young users are drawn into echo chambers where violence is meme-ified, normalized, and celebrated. Bullet casings found at the scene of Kirk’s murder were engraved with phrases tied to gaming culture and antifascist symbolism. Utah Governor Spencer Cox described Robinson as “deeply indoctrinated with leftist ideology,” citing his immersion in “dark internet culture” and Discord based radicalization.
Funding often covers travel and lodging for out of town agitators, professionally printed signs and banners, high-grade pyrotechnics and riot gear, bail funds and legal support, and social media amplification and livestream equipment. Even companies like Crowds on Demand received high budget offers to supply demonstrators but declined, citing legal risks.
Senator Josh Hawley has proposed holding funders of violent riots legally liable. FBI Director Kash Patel confirmed the Bureau is “following the money” behind ideological violence. If passed, Hawley’s proposal could redefine how political unrest is prosecuted, treating financial backers and digital recruiters as culpable actors. This will be a game changer if passed as it will allow for prosecution against some of the biggest funders of the “ defund the police” movement like George Soros and the many organizations he is funding.
We cannot afford to sit back while a small, radical fringe bankrolls destruction and bullies the rest of us into silence. What they’re doing is not activism, it’s organized chaos funded by people who want to tear down everything that makes America strong. Our cities are bleeding resources, our law enforcement is under siege, and our young people are being manipulated in online echo chambers that glorify violence. It’s time for elected leaders to stop tiptoeing and start prosecuting the financial backers of these riots. If we don’t draw the line now, we’re letting fear and chaos win. I refuse to accept that and I know millions of Americans feel the same.
Carol Pefley, Candidate for Ca State Assembly District 28
