Julie Jenkins Fancelli, heiress to the Publix supermarket chain, donated $300,000 to help fund the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's Jan. 6, 2021, rally that preceded a violent riot in the U.S. Capitol was funded by a small yet prominent group of Trump supporters - one of whom came from a family that owns a well-known grocery chain empire. A Wall Street Journal investigation from Jan. 30 found that Julie Jenkins Fancelli, heiress to Publix supermarkets, had donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Trump campaign, and some of that money covered the costs of the Trump rally that led to rioting at the Capitol. Snopes readers asked us if Fancelli's donations directly funded the violent riot where a pro-Trump mob broke into the Capitol before they were dispersed by law enforcement. WSJ learned that she directly gave money to the Trump campaign, which supported the 'Stop the Steal' rally in Washington, D.C., that preceded the riots. There is no evidence that her money went to support the rioters, who were egged on by Trump during his speech at the rally. According to the WSJ report, far-right media personality Alex Jones helped arrange for Fancelli's donation, in addition to donating $50,000 himself to the Jan. 6 event. Fancelli's $300,000 donation covered the lion's share of costs for the Trump rally at the Ellipse, which amounted to $500,000. Records showed that Fancelli donated more than $980,000 in the 2020 election cycle to a joint account for the Trump campaign and Republican Party. Fancelli is the daughter of Publix founder George Jenkins. After news about her donation broke, Publix posted a statement on Twitter saying, 'Mrs. Fancelli is not an employee of Publix Super Markets, and is neither involved in our business operations, nor does she represent the company in any way. We cannot comment on Mrs. Fancelli's actions.' Mrs. Fancelli is not an employee of Publix Super Markets, and is neither involved in our business operations, nor does she represent the company in any way. We cannot comment on Mrs. Fancelli's actions. - PublixHelps (@PublixHelps) January 30, 2021 But many still tweeted #BoycottPublix in response to the report: Normally I'm hesitant to stop shopping at places I feel I can't get the same quality from elsewhere buuuuutttt I'll just have to make an exception this time#BoycottPublix - Beatrix Kiddo (@dezz_or_rae) January 31, 2021 The Jan. 6 Trump Rally was Funded by Top Trump Donor and Publix heiress Julie Jenkins Fancelli with the help of Alex Jones. Fancelli and Jones contributed $350,000 toward the $500,000 cost of the rally. So let's #BoycottPublix Please pass it on. - TheSadTruth💙 (@ReportsDaNews) January 30, 2021 The company also condemned the violence at the Capitol: The violence at the Capitol on Jan. 6 was a national tragedy. The deplorable actions that occurred that day do not represent the values, work or opinions of Publix Super Markets. - PublixHelps (@PublixHelps) January 30, 2021 Fancelli's donation went toward funding the Trump rally that led to the riot, but there is no evidence that her money directly supported the rioting, though Trump's speech was instrumental in the mob's targeting the Capitol. As such, we rate this claim a 'Mixture.'
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