Standoff Between Trump, Non-Profit Group Settled When Kareem Rises To The Top
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — A stubborn standoff between Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump and a local nonprofit group for kids has been settled.
CBS's Amy Johnson said the dispute was settled after two generous donations were made.
She also said a group led by former Lakers great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar helped find the solution.
"I'm so happy to see that other people in Los Angeles are as concerned as I am about our young people and willing to step forward," Abdul-Jabbar said.
He announced the news Thursday at an LAUSD news conference.
Two companies will give the school district the $7,500 deposit it lost when the group pulled the annual Beyond the Bell fundraiser from Trump's golf course in Rancho Palos Verdes.
"We felt that we could not do work with a company, an organization that denigrates immigrants the way that Mr. Trump has, " Beyond the Bell's Alvaro Cortez said.
Wetzel's Pretzels was the first group to help the LAUSD recoup their deposit.
"We just wanted to make sure that our customers and our families weren't being negatively impacted [that] politics wasn't getting in the way of programming that made a huge difference in children's lives," said Jennifer Schuler of Wetzel's Pretzels.
Just after this group made the offer to repay the deposit, real estate developer Rick Caruso did the same.
"We're still going to have our activity," said George McKenna, an LAUSD board member. "We're just won't do it in a location we don't think represents our values."
The annual golf fundraiser is expected to raise $70,000 and will pay for some of the kids in the district to attend Camp Skyhook, an education program for young kids affectionately named for Abdul-Jabbar.
"Fortunately, we've had other people step up and refund the money to the LA Unified School District," said Abdul-Jabbar. "We will get the kids up to there to camp, and that's really all I care about."
The LAUSD now has $15,000 to put down as a deposit for the fundraiser; now, they just need a venue to host.