Schwartz says in a biography on his website that he lives in the Midwest. (The PO box in Ringwood, Illinois is listed on the People's Union USA website.) On social media, he passes through Senecoledojay and will collect more than $93,000 on Friday afternoon to sell and solicit goods for People's Union USA on GofundMe.
Money from GoFundMe will be used to “build a website, move forward this move, and work towards formalizing and forming a nonprofit organization,” according to the People's Unia USA website.
The site also promises transparency about where the money goes, citing approximately $5,000 in its costs so far, including website domain costs and office fees for US patents and trademarks. The website is committed to providing regular updates. Last updated on February 26th.
Schwartz said on his group's website that profits from the People's Union USA products “will be directed towards future operating costs, including pay, expansion and the movement's continued growth and thriving.”
The movement promotes people to support small and medium-sized American businesses, but products are sold through dropshipping companies. Schwartz said he is working to shift the group's product operations to local businesses in Illinois.
“I'm not taking away that penny of money for myself,” Schwartz said of gofundme money. “We sell T-shirts. I use that money to pay someone who needs to go to every email that comes in. It's management and that stuff, but I don't want to. I want all those funds, people's funds to go straight to what we're building.”
Friday's boycott is one of several plans UNAIS USA has been planning for the coming months, according to its website.
Kirsten Neus Contributed research.
