A George Soros-backed feminist organization that battles “structural racism and toxic masculinities” has been awarded a $2 million taxpayer-funded grant by the Biden administration.
Taller Salud, a nonprofit that aims to combat violent crime in Puerto Rico, received the funding from the Justice Department in October.
The group said it plans to use the government money to work with at least 40 men, ages 15 to 30, each year for three years as part of its Peace Accords program.
This amounts to a total of at least 120 men instructed and about $17,000 spent per person, if additional participants aren’t added and some of the funding isn’t doled out to other issues.
For context, Puerto Rico’s per-capita income was about $14,000 in 2021.
The Peace Accords program deploys “highly trained violence interrupters,” including ones who address “structural racism and toxic masculinities” to curtail violence, according to a description of the grant, which was first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
“The three year, $2,000,0000 award will allow TS to continue providing a community violence intervention program that works at the individual level and at the community level seeking crime reduction, improving the criminal justice response to crimes and denormalizing crime in the community of Loíza and the northeastern region of Puerto Rico,” the organization said.
Taller Salud describes itself as a “community based feminist organization dedicated to improving women’s access to health care, to reducing violence within the community and to encourage economic growth.”
It has received funding from numerous groups including left-leaning billionaire Soros’ Open Society Foundations and Planned Parenthood.
The DOJ grant came from its Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative, which funds various programs aimed at reducing violent crime.
Puerto Rico is plagued by high crime rates compared to US states. In 2020, it averaged about 17 murder victims per 100,000 people, compared to the US national average of 6.4, according to data from the UN.
Taller Salud CEO Tania Rosario Méndez bills herself as an “anti-racist activist for environmental justice and gender equality” on her Instagram page.
The group also has spent money to combat poverty, according to tax records. This includes $264,665 that went to its “Peace and Development” program, which aims to “eradicate poverty,” during fiscal year 2020.
Puerto Rico suffers from a high poverty rate, which hovers around 40% depending on the year, per the US Census.
The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a Post request for comment Monday.
