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McKenzie Scott, the 22nd richest person in the world, has donated over $2 billion of her massive fortune to programs that support marginalized communities. This is the second vast donation from Ms. Scott, who recently gave away over $4 billion of her personal wealth in December 2020.
Ms. Scott, whose name may sound familiar as she is the former wife of Jeff Bezos, is committed to supporting underserved communities through her philanthropic gifts. Ms. Scott condemns the economic wealth gap that she said has placed “disproportionate wealth” into a “small number of hands.”
One such set of hands is her former husband, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest human being. Amazon was one of few companies that actually benefited from the Covid19 pandemic, which led to an uptick in Amazon’s sales, likely due to the many people who lived and worked remotely for over a year. Mr. Bezos’ personal fortune increased by $64 million over the last year.
Scott donates money while ex-husband Jeff Bezos plans space trip
Meanwhile, Mr. Bezos recently announced that he was using his enormous wealth to fund an 11-minute trip to space.
Ms. Scott chose over 275 organizations to donate her money, including many devoted to fighting racial injustice across the United States. A few of the recipients of her generous donations are ABFE: A Philanthropic Partnership for Black Communities, Black Ensemble Theater, Black Organizing for Leadership and Dignity (BOLD), and Emerging LGBTQ Leaders of Color Fund, Racial Equity in Journalism Fund.
Ms Scott noted that she worked with a team of advisors in order to determine which organizations would receive funds. Her goal was to provide more resources for “historically underserved” programs and foundations, and to elevate marginalized communities. Said Ms. Scott, “we can begin by acknowledging that people working to build power from within communities are the agents of change. Their service supports and empowers people who go on to support and empower others.”