Favorite
MacKenzie Scott Has Donated $1.7 Billion and Counting To Charity
Novelist and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated $1.7 billion to different causes that support racial equality, the LGBTQ community, and women’s rights as part of a pledge she made last year to use her wealth for global change, though many people on social media aren’t viewing her donation as authentic and instead crediting her wealth to her ex-husband, Jeff Bezos.
Not long after her divorce with Bezos, Scott announced on thegivingpledge.org her future plans to donate almost all of her money to different charitable causes.
She wrote, “In addition to whatever assets life has nurtured in me, I have a disproportionate amount of money to share. My approach to philanthropy will continue to be thoughtful. It will take time and effort and care. But I won’t wait. And I will keep at it until the safe is empty.”
Since that initial post, Scott has worked towards aiding a long list of institutions with the help of non-profit advisors who represent marginalized groups of race, gender, and sexual orientation. On July 28, Scott made a post to The Medium to share the progress of these donations thus far.
She wrote, “I began work to complete my pledge with the belief that my life had yielded two assets that could be of particular value to others: the money these systems helped deliver to me, and a conviction that people who have experience with inequities are the ones best equipped to design solutions.”
Scott then listed the amounts of money given to different causes up to this point since her pledge last May, some of which include $586.7 million to racial equality causes and $133 million towards gender equity.
She continued, “On this list, 91% of the racial equity organizations are run by leaders of color, 100% of the LGBTQ+ equity organizations are run by LGBTQ+ leaders, and 83% of the gender equity organizations are run by women, bringing lived experience to solutions for imbalanced social systems.”
Some people across social media were quick to judge Scott’s donations. One user tweeted, “The first woman became a billionaire how? From stealing wealth from her ex husband. Lol can’t make this sheet up.”
Another responded:
Other users believe the amount she has donated so far is not substantial enough for respect, including one that said, “Wowwww how will she live on the remaining $57 billion?!? What a sacrifice!!”
Scott is one of the world’s richest women, with a net worth of $58.8 billion. She is a Princeton graduate that pursued a career in writing before becoming the wife of Amazon’s company founder and CEO. The couple was married for 25 years before their divorce in 2019, in which Scott received a sizable settlement, including 25% of Bezos’ claim in Amazon.
For those bothered by Scott’s donation, whether because she is a wealthy woman or because they don’t think a $1.7 billion donation is enough to appreciate, she plans on giving her wealth copiously for the years to come.
Scott wrote to The Medium, “What fills me with hope is the thought of what will come if each of us reflects on what we can offer.”
Perhaps knowing the negativity she might receive upon her donation announcement, Scott finished her post by providing a list of organizations in need of donations from anyone who can offer them. She concluded, “They offer an opportunity to invest our good fortune in change, no matter what form our good fortune has taken.”
Here are some organizations from the list which benefit young girls, women, and the fight for gender equality:
0 comments