Michael Jordan and the Jordan Brand have committed to donating $100 million for the next ten years to help ensure equality.
"Jordan Brand is us, the Black Community," a joint statement from Jordan and the Jordan Brand reads. "Jordan Brand is more than one man. It has always been a family. We represent a proud family that has overcome obstacles, fought against discrimination in communities worldwide and that works every day to erase the stain of racism and the damage of injustice. The will, the work, the excellence the world has come to know is the result of one generation after another, pouring their dreams into the next."
While the statement doesn't specify which organizations or initiatives the money will go towards, Jordan and the Jordan Brand promised the $100 million will go to "organizations dedicated to ensuring racial equality, social justice, and greater access to education." As Jordan Brand president Craig Williams added, "There is still more work for us to do to drive real impact for the black community. We embrace the responsibility."
The donation comes just days after Jordan released a statement in response to the death of George Floyd, who died when a Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck for over eight minutes. "I am deeply saddened, truly pained and plain angry," Jordan's statement began. "I see and feel everyone's pain, outrage and frustration. I stand with those who are calling out the ingrained racism and violence toward people in our country. We have had enough."
Throughout his career, Jordan has notably avoided making any statement that might be perceived as political. In 1990, he was notably criticized after he joked he wouldn't endorse Democrat Harvey Gantt because "Republicans buy sneakers too." In the 10-part ESPN series The Last Dance, Jordan explained that he wasn't comfortable making political comments because he "never thought of myself as an activist."