Distressed by the recent rise in hate crimes in the U.S., George Soros has decided to take action.
The billionaire investor has committed $10 million to help the fight against hateful criminal activity, the New York Times reports. Last week the FBI reported a 6% increase in hate crimes against all groups, with a 67% increase in hate crimes against just Muslim Americans. Soros has linked this violence, particularly those against immigrants, to the “incendiary rhetoric” of Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.
Soros, an immigrant himself, was born in Hungary and is a Holocaust survivor. As he told the Times, he does not mean for this to be a political statement against Trump, but rather he wants to push back against the “dark forces that have been awakened” by the election.
Open Society Foundations, Soros’ nonprofit organization, will put a minimum of $5 million towards grants for community groups and civil rights organizations. And that money will give them both the resources to develop plans to combat rising hate crimes and to work with victims.
The remaining half of Soros’ $10 million contribution will be put towards improving the tracking of hate crimes at a national level.