Beyonce is in a giving mood — again — and this time she’s cutting checks for fans who can’t pay their rent.
Queen Bey announced Tuesday that her charity, BeyGOOD, will begin donating $5,000 to 100 individuals and families facing evictions or having trouble paying rent because of the coronavirus. The second round of donations will start going out in February.
This will be welcome news to many Americans, especially because the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s moratorium on evictions expires on Dec. 26. Landlords were previously barred from evicting tenants for nonpayment during the coronavirus, but not forever — and that deadline is looming fast.
“This holiday season while many are stressed with what they will do next regarding their housing, we are proud to share some GOOD news. Beyonce is giving $5k grants to individuals and families facing foreclosures or evictions,” the charity said in a press release.
Earlier in the pandemic, BeyGOOD created a small business impact fund, which reports it has sent $10,000 grants to over 250 small businesses in partnership with the NAACP. BeyGOOD says its programs have financially supported roughly 600 small businesses since it began outreach this year. The small business impact fund will announce another wave of grant recipients later this month.
“Beyonce is continuing her heart of support and helping where needed most,” the nonprofit wrote. “Phase 2 of the BeyGOOD impact fund will now help assist those impacted by the housing crisis. The housing moratorium is set to end on December 26th, resulting in mortgage foreclosures and rental evictions. Many families are impacted, due to the pandemic that resulted in job loss, sickness and overall economy downturn.”
Online applications for financial assistance from BeyGOOD open Jan. 7 and each applicant must provide the necessary documentation to the NAACP. 100 recipients will be selected and notified of their grants in late January. A second round of funding will be available in February, BeyGOOD said.
BeyGOOD has been an active provider of emergency funding during the pandemic — prompting some in the Beyhive to joke that Beyonce is more effective at providing financial relief than Congress, which is currently awaiting the passage of a second coronavirus stimulus package.
“Beyonce doing more than the US government,” wrote one fan. “Outimpacted the $600 stimulus,” another fan tweeted.
Beyonce also worked with Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey in April to help curb the financial losses many Americans were hit with as the pandemic began to impact their jobs — the two donated $6 million to community-focused organizations including the National Alliance in Mental Illness. Dorsey and Beyonce said in a statement at the time, “these are unprecedented times and it will take our collective efforts to make a difference.”
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