George and Amal Clooney donate $1m to anti-hate group: 'There are no two sides to bigotry and hate'

The Southern Poverty Law Center gets another donation from a prominent figure

Jeremy B. White
San Francisco
Tuesday 22 August 2017 20:20
0 comments
George and Amal Clooney, seen here at the Cannes film festival in May 2016, have pledged $1 million to the Southern Poverty Law Center
George and Amal Clooney, seen here at the Cannes film festival in May 2016, have pledged $1 million to the Southern Poverty Law Center

George and Amal Clooney, will reportedly donate $1 million to an organisation that tracks hate groups.

In a statement to People, which reported the move, actor Clooney said helping to fund the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) dealt a blow in the "ongoing fight for equality."

“There are no two sides to bigotry and hate," Mr Clooney said.

Founded in 1971, the SPLC has seen its profile rise in recent months as the hate groups it tracks have increasingly flexed their muscles - most recently at a 'Unite the Right' rally in Charlottesville, Virginia that involved white supremacist groups and the KKK and spiralled into violence before a car rammed into counter-protesters.

Heather Heyer, 32, was killed and at least 19 others were injured when the driver rammed into the crowd. A man has been charged with second-degree murder and a number of other offences over the incident.

The SPLC has become a popular outlet for prominent figures hoping to combat bigotry. In a note to employees following the Charlottesville demonstration, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company would send $1 million to the Southern Poverty Law Center and pledged to match employee donations - joining with other Silicon Valley executives who rushed to condemn the violence and take countermeasures.

The SPLC keeps an active list of hundreds of designated hate groups, a category that encompasses the Ku Klux Klan and other white nationalist groups, black separatists and organizations that promote heavier restrictions on immigration.

Comments

Share your thoughts and debate the big issues

Learn more

Delete Comment

Are you sure you want to delete this comment?

Report Comment

Are you sure you want to mark this comment as inappropriate?

Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

  • You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully
  • Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable
  • Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties
  • We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification

You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.

Create a commenting name to join the debate

Create a commenting name to join the debate

  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Most liked

There are no Independent Premium comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts

Please be respectful when making a comment and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

  • You may not agree with our views, or other users’, but please respond to them respectfully
  • Swearing, personal abuse, racism, sexism, homophobia and other discriminatory or inciteful language is not acceptable
  • Do not impersonate other users or reveal private information about third parties
  • We reserve the right to delete inappropriate posts and ban offending users without notification

You can find our Community Guidelines in full here.

Create a commenting name to join the debate

Create a commenting name to join the debate

  • Newest first
  • Oldest first
  • Most liked

There are no comments yet - be the first to add your thoughts