Fergie Chambers Alleges People’s Forum Is Controlled by Party for Socialism and Liberation
James “Fergie” Chambers, a self-described communist and Cox Enterprises heir, alleged that PSL “wholly funds, staffs, and controls” The People’s Forum, BreakThrough News, and ANSWER Coalition
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In an X post, James “Fergie” Chambers, a self-described communist and heir to the Cox Enterprises fortune, alleged that the Party for Socialism and Liberation operates a tightly controlled network from a single Manhattan building. He claimed PSL “wholly funds, staffs, and controls” The People’s Forum, BreakThrough News, and the ANSWER Coalition.
Chambers also posted a photograph of a hand-drawn diagram that he said was created at his home in 2023 by Ben Becker, BreakThrough News’ editor-in-chief and a PSL member, and Vijay Prashad, executive director of Tricontinental Institute. The diagram Chambers posted appears to place PSL at the center of the network, with The People’s Forum, ANSWER Coalition, BreakThrough News, and the International People’s Assembly shown in outer rings as affiliated or subordinate formations.
Lawmakers have described Tricontinental Institute as part of the Singham-funded nonprofit network, and Chambers said Becker and Prashad created the diagram while courting his support.
Congressional Scrutiny Already Underway
The People’s Forum has faced mounting scrutiny from Republican-led congressional committees and Senator Chuck Grassley over its funding, tax-exempt status, and possible foreign-influence exposure. In September 2025, House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith demanded records from The People’s Forum, citing public reporting that the organization had received more than $20 million from Neville Roy Singham, a U.S. technology mogul based in Shanghai whom lawmakers have described as closely aligned with the Chinese Communist Party.
Congressional letters and hearing materials have accused The People’s Forum and allied groups of helping drive disruptive protest activity after October 7, including infrastructure blockades, campus occupations, and vandalism of federal property. Smith’s September 2025 letter also alleged that The People’s Forum justified Hamas’s October 7 attacks within hours and hosted events pushing CCP-aligned narratives.
The PSL Connection
Chambers’ allegation could add pressure on congressional investigators examining The People’s Forum’s foreign-linked funding to scrutinize PSL’s role in the broader network. The Party for Socialism and Liberation is a Marxist-Leninist party that has sponsored over 1,700 anti-Israel rallies since October 7, 2023, many featuring what the ADL described as expressions of support for Hamas.
The organizational overlap between PSL and the People’s Forum has been documented by multiple research institutions. Brian Becker, PSL’s co-founder, serves as national director of ANSWER Coalition and teaches courses at the People’s Forum. BreakThrough BT Media Inc., the nonprofit behind BreakThrough News, is registered at 320 W. 37th St., the same Manhattan address as The People’s Forum.
Jewish Onliner has previously reported on the three organizations in the People's Forum network and their connections to Singham funding. In a reply to an X user asking where PSL gets its funding, Chambers answered simply: “Roy Singham.”
Implications for Investigators
The House Natural Resources Committee has also probed The People’s Forum and ANSWER Coalition over the July 2024 Union Station protest, where agitators assaulted police officers and vandalized monuments. At a February 2026 hearing, Adam Sohn’s written testimony said Singham “has participated in CCP propaganda trainings,” shared office space with Chinese state media in Shanghai, and coordinated messaging with PRC-aligned outlets, while using donor-advised funds to move large sums through U.S. tax-exempt infrastructure.
If Chambers’ depiction is accurate, and PSL exercises operational control over entities that have received or benefited from foreign-linked funding, lawmakers may seek to examine whether PSL itself warrants scrutiny under foreign-influence disclosure laws or tax-exempt compliance rules.
Chambers’ decision to publicly describe the network as “counterinsurgency” and “the biggest danger” to leftist organizing suggests growing internal tensions over the network’s funding sources, organizational structure, and political tactics.