Netflix CEO Pledges $120 Million to HBCUs and United Negro College Fund

Netflix CEO Reed Hastings and his wife Patty Quillin pledged to donate $120 million to Spelman and Morehouse College, and the United Negro College Fund.

“There are many good places to donate, but the [historically Black colleges and universities] are 150 years old, incredibly resilient, producing an amazing number of Black graduates,” Hastings said during an interview with CNBC on Monday. “We want to help draw attention to the HBCUs, to them being part of the solution for America, and for black children to aspire to.”

The donation comes after the growing outrage for racial equality since the death of George Floyd. On top of that, Black communities have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The amount of tragedy really did get us to focus and say, ‘let’s do something now that will be supportive of these great institutions and give people some sense of hope,’” Hastings continued. “This moment is not the first time that racism has reared its, you know, terribly ugly head.”