Wounded Warrior Project a Legal ‘Bully,’ Say Small Veterans Groups

The Wounded Warrior Project, a national veterans charity with $235 million in annual revenue, has regularly trained its legal guns on much smaller organizations over their names and graphics, The Daily Beast writes.

At least seven groups spoke to the news and politics website about their battles with the national nonprofit, which has aggressively pursued organizations that use the term “wounded warrior” in their name or silhouetted soldiers in their logo.

Keystone Wounded Warriors, a Pennsylvania charity that takes in about $200,000 a year, says it has spent $72,000 defending itself in a court battle with the Wounded Warrior Project. The head of another nonprofit who said his group has been pressured by the project’s lawyers but not sued said the larger group tries “to bully smaller organizations like ourselves. … They get really territorial about fundraising.” The Wounded Warrior Project did not respond to the Daily Beast’s requests for comment.

Read a Chronicle of Philanthropy article about Wounded Warrior Project leader Steven Nardizzi’s outspoken criticism of charity ratings agencies.