Oprah Winfrey is the latest billionaire to step up amid the coronavirus pandemic. The television mogul today announced she will donate $10 million to coronavirus relief efforts, Forbes reports.
In an Instagram post, Winfrey said “I was struck by the work these organizations are doing and while everyone’s priority right now is to stay safer at home, I know there are many of us looking for ways to help.”
Part of the donation—$1 million—will go to a new initiative called America’s Food Fund, which will help feed local communities. The fund, which launched today, is a joint effort by activist and chef José Andrés, who founded World Central Kitchen; Feeding America CEO Claire Babineaux-Fontenot; actor Leonardo DiCaprio; fellow billionaire Laurene Powell Jobs; and Apple. It is accepting donations on GoFundMe and has already raised over $12 million.
Winfrey wasn’t specific about how she will donate the remaining $9 million, but did say it will go to Americans in cities across the country, as well as where she grew up, in rural Mississippi, Milwaukee and Tennessee.
Help is needed now more than ever as COVID-19 cases rise, topping one million worldwide, and people find themselves laid off. In the U.S., unemployment claims hit a record 6.6 million last week and requests for food stamps are surging.
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