Billionaire commits $500 million to help refugees and migrants
Billionaire commits $500 million to help refugees and migrants
It’s more money than some countries are putting toward the cause.
Billionaire George Soros said Tuesday that he would invest $500 million to fund projects aiding migrants and refugees — more money than some entire countries have dedicated toward the people affected by the largest migration crisis since World War II.
The announcement comes at a time when 65.3 million people have been forcibly displaced from their home countries, with at least 21.4 million people registered as refugees with the United Nations refugee agency.
In a Wall Street Journal opinion piece released Tuesday, Soros said that his monetary commitment would help fund “startups, established companies, social-impact initiatives and businesses founded by migrants and refugees themselves.”
“Although my main concern is to help migrants and refugees arriving in Europe, I will be looking for good investment ideas that will benefit migrants all over the world,” Soros wrote. He explained that investments and profits from his investment would fund programs at the Open Society Foundations, his philanthropic organization that in part gives out social justice grants.
The investment comes three months after a White House-led “Call to Action” asking private sector businesses to give opportunities to refugees who are “a valuable, untapped resource” and “can thrive and contribute wherever they reside.”
Soros’ investment in refugees and migrants represents more money than some countries have given to refugee agencies to impede the large flow of migrants and refugees seeking refuge away from insecure and violent places.
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https://thinkprogress.org/george-soros-500-million-refugee-migrant-7fab236fe025#.l21yzt88a
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I've been grumbling for some time about where are the billionaires?! Maybe even buy a big chunk of a Mediterranean island or something and build facilities for temporary housing. Europe does not have the huge wide open spaces that the U.S., Canada, and Russia have and it looks like the global refugee crisis could go on for some time.
wonderful, and I imagine rewarding for you as well. Major props! 
Millions of our own citizens come from an American culture that has been worked for decades by billions of dollars spent by corporate barons to propagate intolerant, literalist forms of christianity.
They have a poorer command of the language and humble socioeconomic origins. They often bear children who grow up with social grudges, including racism, sexism, and bigotry. Their religion provides a rallying point for many of these grievances.
A populist raised-in-America backlash has resulted in Trump.
The conservative viewpoint you espouse in your post (spending money on people is "counterproductive"
is not progressive and it lacks perspective. Austerity does not work.
On net, refugees and immigrants are a tremendous benefit to our society. [font size = "+1"]The smart families move away from war and disaster and many [font color = "purple"](if we still have a little bravery left)[/font] end up here.[/font] They are adaptable, strong, and they are survivors. The less intelligent and less progressive ones stay where they are.
