The charitable group that asks Broadway patrons to donate money toward members of the theater community struggling with health issues — has come under fire for rechannelling $400,000 to groups providing humanitarian assistance in Gaza.
Volunteers for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS are often seen with the red buckets making a pitch for their cause and collecting donations from theatergoers as actors take their final bow after the performance.
The group recently announced that it donated two $200,000 donations to Doctors for the World and the International Rescue Committee to provide humanitarian assistance in Gaza while the war rages between Israel and Hamas.
But Rabbi Erica Gerson filed a complaint with Attorney General Letitia James’ Charities Bureau, saying the group was misleading theatergoers about the purpose of the donations.
Gerson recently donated to Broadway Cares while attending the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child show with her daughter.
Afterward, Gerson said she was flabbergasted when she saw a story in the theater publication, Playbill, that Broadway Cares donated $400,000 for humanitarian efforts in Gaza.
“I was entirely misled by both the verbal pitch at the theater and the description on the website. I am sure other theaters would feel the same if this were brought to their attention,” Gerson said in the complaint sent to Attorney General Letitia James’ Office, which regulates tax-exempt charitable organizations.
“The common understanding is that these funds support theater professionals in the United States.”
In her complaint, she links to two videos of actors in the musicals “Gutenberg!” and “Merrily We Roll Along” appealing to audiences to contribute to Broadway Cares to aid ailing workers in the theater.
During a Post interview Tuesday, Gerson also expressed concern whether the money would make its way to the credible humanitarian groups or be intercepted by the terrorist group Hamas, which invaded Israel and killed 1,200 people, igniting a brutal war in the Gaza Strip.
The move is also a slap in the face to struggling workers in the theater community, she said.
“The clear message that they give in the verbal pitch to the audience is that this money is supposed to help struggling people in the theater community. They say they’re helping people in the theater community in need,” she said.
“How can you fundraise for one cause and give it to another that’s totally unrelated? Can you fundraise for an environmental group and instead give it to the opera?”
The mission statement on Broadway Cares website said donations are supposed to help provide direct support to individuals in the entertainment industry impacted by health issues, such as HIV/AIDS and more recently COVID-19.
The statement also says the group can “support efforts by the entertainment industry in other charitable or educational endeavors, in each case as approved by the Board of Trustees.”
Broadway Cares executive director Tom Viola told Playbill that the organization was acting with “compassion” by donating toward essential supplies in the war zone.
“As those in Gaza continue to face seemingly endless devastation and loss, their rippling heartbreak resonates across the world and in our corner in the theatre district,” Viola in a statement.
“Broadway Cares is responding with action and compassion, providing food, water, fuel, quality health care, essential medicines, and supplies to all caught in the tragedy of this conflict and so many families facing catastrophe.”
AG James’ office had no immediate comment.
Credit: Source link
