August 4, 2005 | Read Time: 2 minutes
Oprah Winfrey tops Black Enterprise magazine’s list of the black philanthropists who give the most, a ranking that appears in the August issue.
Ms. Winfrey, the television and magazine entrepreneur, gave $132.6-million from 2002 to 2004 to her foundations, which support groups that focus on education, the arts, public health, and women’s issues. Other prominent women also topped the list, including Sheila C. Johnson (No. 2), the former wife of Robert L. Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television, who donated $7.35-million in 2003-4, and Eunice Walker Johnson (No. 8), producer-director of Ebony Fashion Fair, who gave away $1-million in 2003.
Ms. Winfrey’s foundations and charities — the Oprah Winfrey Foundation, Oprah’s Angel Network, and the Oprah Winfrey Operating Foundation — also sat atop the magazine’s list of grant makers that gave out the most money in 2003. Ms. Winfrey’s organizations donated more than $10.5-million that year.
Athletes like David Robinson, Tiger Woods, Alonzo Mourning, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and Charles Barkley gave away six- and seven-figure sums through their foundations, the magazine says. The entertainment industry also spawned big gifts from foundations affiliated with such celebrities as Tom Joyner, Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, Russell Simmons, Bill Cosby, and Montel Williams, according to the magazine.
The history of black philanthropy dates back to the 18th century, and the tradition of African-Americans supporting churches, social-service groups, and educational institutions is still strong today. Black civic and professional groups like the 100 Black Men and the Links, and individuals like Emerson U. Fullwood, corporate vice president and executive at Xerox North America, have raised big sums for scholarship programs, according to Black Enterprise.
A growing number of black donors are supporting cultural organizations, as well as charities that have missions dealing with technology and health, the magazine says. Marshall Faulk, the football player, established a technology center in San Diego to teach job skills and computer literacy, while Reginald Van Lee, senior vice president of Booz Allen Hamilton, serves on the board of the Studio Museum in Harlem. Black philanthropists are also becoming more global in their giving, supporting charities that are fighting the AIDS pandemic and genocide in Africa.
Most blacks give relatively small amounts “in cash or checks, usually in reaction to friends, relatives, and neighbors with the best sales pitch,” Erica Hunt, president of the Twenty-First Century Foundation, tells the magazine. But other people are experimenting with new ways to donate, such as giving circles. And Emmett Carson, chief executive officer of the Minneapolis Foundation, says that as blacks who belong to the first generation of “megawealth” hit their peak earning years, their estates could ultimately lead to a “new renaissance of African American giving the likes of which the world has never seen before.”
The article is available online at http://www.blackenterprise.com/.
