Jeff Bezos’ ex MacKenzie Scott donates $40M in latest DEI gift

Jeff Bezos’ ex-wife MacKenzie Scott donated $40 million to a nonprofit dedicated to the preservation of black history, doubling down on her DEI contributions.

Wednesday’s contribution marked the largest donation in the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund’s history — and was twice the size of a gift Scott gave the same group in 2021.

Just days earlier, the 55-year-old philanthropist – who is worth $32.5 billion, according to Forbes – made a $42 million gift to 10,000 Degrees, which awards scholarships to low-income, mostly non-white students.

Scott’s recent contributions come as the Trump administration has sought to crack down on DEI programs throughout the country.

Since President Trump took office, several major companies – from Bezos’ Amazon – have backtracked on such initiatives.

Scott, who has vowed to give away most of her fortune, has donated about $110 million specifically to DEI causes in the past year alone, according to Fortune magazine.

“The scale and impact of MacKenzie Scott’s continued investment in historic preservation is leaving an enduring mark on our nation’s history, and we are grateful for her philanthropic leadership,” Brent Leggs, executive director of the the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, said in a Wednesday statement.

The organization, which is part of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, launched in 2017. It’s the largest nonprofit dedicated to the preservation of sites associated with black history in the US.

To date, it has raised nearly $200 million and supported more than 378 preservation projects, including churches, museums and homes.

In recent years, the fund has invested millions in historic black churches like the New Bethel Baptist Church in Detroit, Mich., which was commissioned in 1961 by Aretha Franklin’s father, Rev. CL Franklin.

The fund also supported the restoration of the first black cemetery in Houston, which dates back to 1875. 

Scott has 2019 divorce from the Amazon founder, which left her with about 4% of the company.

She has gained a reputation for giving billions to small nonprofits with no conditions and minimal reporting requirements, a big contrast to her mega-rich peers who often make high-profile donations to larger charities.

Last year, Scott donated $2 billion to 199 organizations, her Yield Giving website stated.

In the past year, she has reportedly slashed her stake in Amazon by about 42%, or $12.6 billion, according to a regulatory filing viewed by Bloomberg.

Despite trimming her stake over the years, Scott has grown richer since the divorce as the stock has soared about 150%.