Kroger has announced it removed the group the Indiana Oath Keepers, a militia group with members who face charges in the Jan. 6 siege of the U.S. Capitol, from its Community Rewards program.
The company was not aware that its giving program was directly funding the organization, because it is based on “customer-directed giving” that allows thousands of IRS-approved nonprofits to participate, a Kroger statement read.
The Oath Keepers posted their program on their website as a way to fund the organization. One of the leaders of the Oath Keepers, Thomas Caldwell, was arrested Tuesday on four federal charges, including conspiracy to commit an offense against the United States, in connection to the U.S. Capitol insurrection Jan. 6.
“We were dismayed to learn today this group is part of the Community Rewards program,” Kroger’s statement read. “Given the concerning nature of the allegations against this organization, we have immediately removed the group from receiving customer-directed funds. Kroger has not directed any corporate grants or charitable dollars to the organization.”
Several customers questioned the Oath Keepers’ participation in the Kroger program online earlier this week.
.@Kroger, why are you helping the Oath Keepers, a militia group, raise money?? pic.twitter.com/kmJ72v4C8Q
— Sleeping Giants (@slpng_giants) January 19, 2021
According to the Indianapolis Star, state records indicate the Indiana branch was incorporated May 11, 2017, as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Bryan Humes of Fort Wayne was listed as the president. Fundraising filtered through community programs but directed by customers is common. In addition to the Kroger program, the Oath Keepers have garnered financial support from Amazon through its customer-directed donation program called Amazon Smile. Amazon said in a statement to the newspaper that it is examining the donations to the Oath Keepers.
It’s not clear how Kroger vets its participants for the Community Rewards program, but at the end of the year, according to Kroger’s website, nonprofits receive funds based on the percentage of spending from customers who select that cause as a beneficiary.
The Oath Keepers have made national headlines recently because the organization’s members are accused of planning a coordinated attack at the Capitol. Court documents allege Caldwell, a 65-year-old from Clarke County, Virginia, organized and led a team of eight to 10 men, including self-styled Ohio militia members who were also taken into custody Sunday.
The government accuses Caldwell of sending a Facebook message on Jan. 1 in which he said he had secured rooms for several of his cohorts at a Ballston, Virginia, Comfort Inn near the Capitol that “would allow us to go hunting at night if we wanted to,” The Washington Post reported.
The Oath Keepers are one of several extremist groups, including the Proud Boys and Three Percenters, that have members arrested as suspects in the deadly attack on the Capitol. Five people died as a result of the rioting, while numerous others were injured. Federal investigators are increasingly finding links between these groups and the attack, which former President Donald Trump has been impeached for encouraging.
