Google holds 8:46 minute silence to honour George Floyd & black lives lost; pledges $12 Mn

Sundar Pichai, Chief Executive Officer of Google, on Wednesday announced that the firm has pledged $12 million to fund organizations that are fighting to address racial inequality. The developments were announced via a blog post which included a mail addressed to all employees earlier in the day.

READ: 4 Minneapolis Cops Now Charged In George Floyd's Death

Google donates to fight racism  

"We’ll be giving $12 million in funding to organizations working to address racial inequities. Our first grants of $1 million each will go to our long-term partners at the Center for Policing Equity and the Equal Justice Initiative. And we’ll be providing technical support through our Google.org Fellows program. This builds on the $32 million we have donated to racial justice over the past five years. We’ll also offer $25 million in Ad Grants to help organizations fighting racial injustice provide critical information," Pichai wrote.

"Supporting worthy organizations is a step in the right direction, but it is not a replacement for doing the harder work ahead both within and outside of Google. The events of the past few weeks reflect deep structural challenges. We’ll work closely with our Black community to develop initiatives and product ideas that support long-term solutions—and we’ll keep you updated. As part of this effort, we welcome your ideas on how to use our products and technology to improve access and opportunity," he concluded.

READ: US: Thousands Near White House Protest Death Of Floyd

Many firms and individuals are coming forward to the cause, including artists such as The Weeknd, who took to his Instagram handle to reveal that he donated nearly $5,00,000 to various Black Lives Matter causes. The musician shared details of his contribution and revealed that he donated $100,000 to National Bail Out, $200,000 to The Colin Kaepernick Know Your Rights Camp Legal Defense Initiative and another $200,000 for the Black Lives Matter Global Network. Take a look at the post: 

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