Jay Z and Meek Mill are stepping up for individuals who work in the prison system and who are incarcerated.
With a $10 million donation from Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, the hip-hop mogul and rapper’s criminal justice organization REFORM Alliance is sending 10 million surgical masks and other personal protective equipment to correctional facilities across the country.
“This is 2.3 million Americans that don’t usually have the loudest voice,” Bob Pilon, president of the REFORM Alliance, told CBS News. “That’s why we’re doing this, to give that population a voice and answer their call to be treated like humans.”
Dorsey’s donation was made through his Smart Small relief fund. He’s pledged $1 billion to COVID-19 relief efforts. The charity is based on a transparent tracker of public grants, which Dorsey said will shift focus after the pandemic.
“I’m grateful REFORM exists. The criminal justice system needs to change. COVID-19 adds to the injustices, and REFORM is best suited to help,” Dorsey said in a statement.
REFORM intends to create a similar system to track the equipment. A small team will manage the program’s accountability from start to finish, Pilon said.
The donation coincides with the REFORM’s new #AnswerTheirCall digital campaign, an effort to highlight mass incarceration through the accounts of inmates.
Awesome, fellas!
