Basketball legend Michael Jordan says he and the Jordan brand will donate $100 million to social justice campaigns in the wake of the killing of George Floyd and the resulting protest movement that has sprung up.
Jordan, who has become a billionaire via his sporting career and his entrepreneurship, released a statement on Friday that read:
"Jordan Brand is us, the Black Community.
Jordan Brand is more than one man. It has always been a family. We represent a proud family that has overcome obstacles, fought against discrimination in communities worldwide and that works every day to erase the stain of racism and the damage of injustice.
The will, the work, the excellence the world has come to know is the result of one generation after another, pouring their dreams into the next.
It’s 2020, and our family now includes anyone who aspires to our way of life. Yet as much as things have changed, the worst remains the same.
Black lives matter. This isn't a controversial statement. Until the ingrained racism that allows our country’s institutions to fail is completely eradicated, we will remain committed to protecting and improving the lives of Black people.
Today, we are announcing that Michael Jordan and Jordan Brand will be donating $100 million over the next 10 years to organizations dedicated to ensuring racial equality, social justice and greater access to education."
Joint Statement from Michael Jordan & Jordan Brand regarding $100m donation. pic.twitter.com/yYXWh5eBZl
— Estee Portnoy (@esteep) June 5, 2020
Jordan also released a personal statement saying:
“I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry … I see and feel everyone’s pain, outrage and frustration. I stand with those who are calling out the ingrained racism and violence toward people of color in our country. We have had enough.”
The money will be released over the next 10 years focusing on those causes that promote anti-racism and social justice. Nike, of which the Jordan Brand is a subsidiary, have also promised $40 million over the next 4 years to the US black community.
This move by 57 year-old Jordan is by far the largest charitable donation made to the social justice movement, though millions of other citizens have been donating to causes such as ‘bail-funds’ for arrested protestors and charities that specifically assist African-Americans.
All four officers involved in the Floyd murder have now been charged and are awaiting trial, protests are ongoing and have sprung up now not only in the United States but across the world. Major demos, and low-level rioting, took place in London, Brussels and Paris over the weekend.
Jordan is currently the owner of the Charlotte Hornets.
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