Billionaire philanthropist and author MacKenzie Scott announced Tuesday she is giving $640 million to 361 small nonprofits that responded to an open call for applications.
Yield Giving’s first round of donations is more than double what Scott had initially pledged to give away through the application process. Since she began giving away billions in 2019, Scott and her team have researched and selected organizations without an application process and provided them with large, unrestricted gifts.
In a brief note on her website, Scott wrote she was grateful to Lever for Change, the organization that managed the open call, and the evaluators for “their roles in creating this pathway to support for people working to improve access to foundational resources in their communities. They are vital agents of change.”
Ehh. Even if he is, his choice of charities and other beneficiaries are sometimes questionable. His push for charter schools being a great example. My dislike of billionare philanthropy stems from the fact that it can often subvert democratic interests in favor of one individual’s personal vision and myopic views.
I have no idea what charter schools are.
I’m not claiming that Bill Gates is some kind of God like champion of progressive politics. Billionaires never are.
He is however sacrificing a significant portion of his wealth in order to make the world better. A quick google says $7b in 2022 or something.
The tax write off is just something idiots say. That $7b is gone. Yes he may save some tax but not $7b.
Most billionaires would just buy political influence directly.