Mackenzie Scott, Jeff Bezos' ex-wife, has donated the money to various organizations that support racial justice, the LGBT community and gender equality • "I can divert attention to organizations and leaders interested in change"
Intends to donate half of the capital. Scott and Bezos in 2018 // Archive photo: AFP
Mackenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder and world-rich man Jeff Bezos, announced yesterday (Tuesday) that since her divorce she has donated $ 1.7 billion to charity to 116 different organizations. According to Forbes, Scott's fortune is estimated at more than $ 62 billion, making her the second richest woman in the world.
The 50-year-old writer said she "watched the first half of 2020 with a combination of heartache and terror," and that she announced her contribution to pay attention to the purposes for which the money was donated during the Corona plague. "My reflections after the recent events have led me to share a privilege I have ignored: the attention I can divert to organizations and leaders who want to create change."
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Among other things, Scott has given $ 586 million to organizations that support racial justice and $ 399.5 million to groups that help encourage people to improve their economic situation. Organizations that support gender equality, global development, and equality for the LGBT community have also received grants. These organizations also include those associated with former United States Presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush.
Scott is considered a key figure in making Amazon what it is today. She and Jeff met in 1992 when he interviewed her for a job at a financial company where he worked before founding Amazon, and we got married a year later. They have three biological sons and a daughter they adopted from China. In January of last year, the couple announced that they were separating: "Even if they told us in advance that we would separate after 25 years, we would do everything well. We had a great life as a married couple. Although we will get a new label, we will remain family and good friends."
Following up on the commitment I made last year to give away the majority of my wealth in my lifetime: https://t.co/Ocb8eU5UR1. (Note my Medium account is under my new last name - changed back to middle name I grew up with, after my grandfather Scott.)
- MacKenzie Scott (@mackenziebezos) July 28, 2020
A few months after announcing their separation, Scott announced she would donate half of her fortune to charity. She is taking part in a "commitment" campaign launched about a decade ago by billionaire Warren Buffo and Microsoft founder Bill Gates and his wife Melinda, which calls on the world's rich to donate at least half of their fortunes during their lives or wills. The philanthropic enterprise is not bound by law, but it expresses a commitment defined as "moral."
The news of Scott's huge contribution comes a day before her ex-husband testifies before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee about whether the world's largest technology companies, including Facebook, Apple and Google, have too much power in the digital market. Bezos will testify alongside the CEOs of those companies.