Margaret Jacobsen (left), Rebekah Brewis (right).

Officials in Oregon are reportedly investigating claims by a feminist organizer of the Jan. 21 Portland’s Women’s March that a transgender activist absconded with more than $20,000 raised for the event.

The accusations involve Rebekah Brewis, who was a male in 2000 when he was sentenced to more than five years in prison on robbery charges. In a Facebook post last month, Women’s March organizer Margaret Jacobsen said Brewis, executive director of PDX Trans Pride (PTP), had agreed to be a “fiscal sponsor” of the march.

“We raised approximately $22,000 from t-shirt sales,” Jacobsen wrote. “We do not know how much was raised from direct donations because we do not have access to those records. After the event was over we contacted Ms. Brewis to discuss the need for additional reimbursements and how to handle the remaining funds. At that time Ms. Brewis said it was her intention to keep all of the funds for PTP, which was never agreed to. She then stopped communicating with us about this issue.”

Jacobsen also raised questions about the legitimacy of PTP, saying that she learned that two of the group’s board member had resigned, so that it appears Brewis is running a one-person non-profit organization. The dispute casts doubt on whether contributions to the Women’s March were tax-deductible, as donors had been told.

“The Oregon Department of Justice confirmed this week that it is looking into a complaint but stopped short of saying it has launched an investigation,” Lizzy Acker of the Oregonian reported March 3. “And, due to complicated tax designations for nonprofits, it appears many of the Women’s March donations may not have been tax-deductible after all. . . . PDX Trans Pride is not itself a 501c3 and is fiscally sponsored by [California-based] Media Alliance, according to that group’s executive director Tracy Rosenberg.” Acker further reported:

The link for Women’s March donations went to a PDX Trans Pride PayPal account that was not associated with Media Alliance. The donation link had been shared on Facebook by both the Women’s March and PDX Trans Pride. It was also included in a Women’s March FAQ. . . .

In a phone message . . . Brewis said that other Portland leaders are “jealous of the success of the event,” adding that the march “was controlled and led by our organization.”

“We have an active legal investigation into certain matters” around the Women’s March, she added, referencing “transphobic events” and “interpersonal violence.”

Portland police say they are not involved. The state Justice Department said it is looking into one complaint related to funding the march.

Another Portland trans organization, Greater Portland Trans Unity, meanwhile, distanced itself from Brewis.

“Ms. Brewis has a long history of contentious and harmful interactions with individuals and organizations in our communities,” wrote Greater Portland Trans Unity on Facebook. “As connected individuals and organizational leaders, we have for several years held a quiet consensus that PDX Trans Pride, represented by Ms. Brewis, is not a safe advocate or representative of our communities.”

In 2000, Brewis, then known as Jorey Brewis, was sentenced to 70 months in prison for robbery in Ashland.

Brewis was 19 when police say he and two accomplices burglarized a woman’s home in 1999. When the woman unexpectedly returned during the burglary, Brewis threatened her with a knife.

In 2007, Brewis castrated himself while in prison and was then confined in the psychiatric ward at Oregon State Hospital. According to documents published by Gender Identity Watch, Brewis sued Oregon officials claiming they had failed to provide gender transition treatment. Brewis, who was released in 2011, also claimed to have been diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder and borderline personality disorder.

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