News June 16, 2021
MacKenzie Scott Donates Another $2.7 Billion!
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MacKenzie Scott continues to donate billions of dollars to worthy causes!
In a Medium post published Tuesday, the author — who was formerly married to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos — revealed that she donated $2.739 billion to 286 organizations benefiting those who have been “historically underfunded and overlooked.”
While teaming up with researchers, administrators, and advisers — as well as her new husband Dan Jewett — Scott gave gifts to schools that educate students “who come from communities that have been chronically underserved,” charities that are “bridging divides through interfaith support and collaboration,” small art organizations, and other groups.
“People struggling against inequities deserve center stage in stories about change they are creating,” she wrote. “Any wealth is a product of a collective effort that included them. The social structures that inflate wealth present obstacles to them. And despite those obstacles, they are providing solutions that benefit us all.”
In her message, Scott — who has an approximate fortune of $60 billion, per Forbes — also spoke about “extreme poverty” and how it disproportionately affects people of color and women.
“Over 700 million people globally still live in extreme poverty. To find solutions, we all benefit from on-the-ground insights and diverse engagement, so we prioritized organizations with local teams, leaders of color, and a specific focus on empowering women and girls,” she explained.
Since joining the Giving Pledge — an initiative started by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates in 2010 where billionaires pledge to donate half of their fortune to charitable causes — Scott has given away over $8 billion.
In July 2020, Scott announced she donated $1.7 billion to 116 organizations after consulting with a team of nonprofit advisers “with key representation from historically marginalized race, gender, and sexual identity groups.”
Months later, in December of that year, Scott donated more than $4.1 billion to 384 organizations across all 50 states, as well as Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C., to groups including historically black universities such as Morgan State University in Baltimore and Prairie View A&M University in Texas.
In March, Jewett wrote a blog post for The Giving Pledge where he confirmed his marriage to Scott and promised to donate a significant portion of his wealth to notable causes. Jewett is a science teacher at Seattle’s Lakeside School where Scott’s children with Bezos have attended classes.
“I have been a teacher for the majority of my life, as well as a grateful student of the generosity of those around me,” he wrote, adding, “And now, in a stroke of happy coincidence, I am married to one of the most generous and kind people I know — and joining her in a commitment to pass on an enormous financial wealth to serve others.”
