George and Amal Clooney arrive at the American Film Institute’s 46th Life Achievement Award Gala Tribute To George Clooney. Photo: Getty
In case you needed a reason to love them even more, George and Amal Clooney have pledged to donate US $100,000 through their foundation to the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights. The couple has made the donation in an effort to help migrant children being forcibly separated from their parents at the US-Mexico border as part of a “zero tolerance” initiative pushed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
In a statement released on Wednesday, the Beirut-born human rights attorney and her actor husband question how their 1-year-old twins, Alexander and Ella, will feel when they read about this moment in history. “At some point in the future our children will ask us: “Is it true, did our country really take babies from their parents and put them in detention centers?” the couple wrote. “And when we answer yes, they’ll ask us what we did about it. What we said. Where we stood. We can’t change this administration’s policy but we can help defend the victims of it. Today, the Clooney Foundation for Justice will donate $100,000 to the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights.” This comes only a few months after the husband and wife donated US$500,000 to the March for Our Lives, in the name of their children.
Maria Woltjen, the executive director at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights at the University of Chicago, adds in the statement: “This administration’s policy disregards international law and basic principles of human decency. To treat children in such a cruel manner not only violates their legal rights but also their basic needs. We are doing everything we can to advocate on behalf of the thousands of children who are separated and alone, and we are grateful for the generous support of George and Amal Clooney and the Clooney Foundation for Justice—it could not be more vital at this time.”
It’s been reported that more than 2,300 children have been separated from their parents and incarcerated. A number of celebrities have used their platform to express their outrage about the policy, including Bella and Gigi Hadid, Reese Witherspoon, John Legend, and Chrissy Teigen.
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