In hopes of mobilizing an effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Jay-Z’s Shawn Carter Foundation (SCF), and Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation (CLF) have banded together to donate $1 million each to organizations battling the virus.
The funds will assist efforts to provide free tests for all New Yorkers regardless of legal residence status, ensure that daycare workers and their respective facilities meet CDC guidelines to care for healthcare officials and first responders’ children, and while keeping in line with young kids in shelters, the funds will be allocated to providing materials to keep up with studies plus “virtual metal health support” for parents in those shelters.
“In times of crisis it is imperative that we come together as one community to ensure that everyone, especially the most vulnerable, has access to critical needs: shelter, health, nutrition and education,” Gloria Carter, SCF’s CEO and co-founder, said. “The only way to get through this pandemic is with love and action.” The funds will benefit the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Fund for Public Schools, Mayor’s Fund for L.A., and the New York Immigration Coalition.
The news arrives days after Rihanna’s foundation donated $5 million to various organizations battling the pandemic. The funds aimed to distribute ventilators, masks and other necessary protective gear for nurses and doctors. In addition to aiding healthcare workers, both Rihanna and Jay-Z’s organizations aim to amplify the nation’s attention on prisoners. The number of inmates and officials within prisons testing positive for the novel coronavirus is growing each day, leading the foundations to advocate for releases from jail or detention centers.
“There are a number of populations who are especially vulnerable during this pandemic — those who are undocumented, incarcerated, elderly and homeless, as well as children of frontline health workers and first responders,” said Justine Lucas, the Executive Director of the Clara Lionel Foundation. “Now more than ever, we need to support organizations prioritizing the health and rights of these individuals.”
