Throughout the pandemic, thousands of Americans have lost jobs and struggled to find the funds to pay rent. Black and Latinx Americans have been disproportionally affected financially during this time, with housing instability becoming increasingly exacerbated by the lack of governmental support. Many have demanded that a stimulus package from congress should include enough money to supply some relief for those seeking to maintain housing.
The second stimulus check of the pandemic came in at a measly $600—certainly not enough to help most families pay for an entire month’s rent. But Beyoncé and her BeyGOOD Foundation are stepping in to help, along with the NAACP.
Together, they are offering $5,000 grants to those in need of housing assistance. According to the NAACP, they pledge “to provide one hundred grants up to $5,000 each to families who are delinquent in their home mortgage or rental payments.” Applications are now available on the NAACP website for $500,000 in total to be distributed.
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This is not the first time during the pandemic that Beyoncé has stepped in to help Black Americans who are struggling financially. Last summer, BeyGOOD launched the Small Business Impact Fund, and pledged to assist over 250 Black-owned businesses, again alongside the NAACP.
The gap in access to affordable and safe housing for Black and Latinx Americans was wide long before the pandemic, but since last March, it has only widened. Many have fallen behind on rent and mortgage payments throughout the coronavirus pandemic due to loss of employment or sickness, and as the temporary moratorium on evictions ended on December 26, 2020, Beyoncé launched phase two of her BeyGOOD Impact Fund, which includes the $5,000 grants for housing relief. And while Beyoncé launches her housing relief plan, thousands are still waiting for congress to send a relief check for families struggling to pay for housing. Perhaps the commenters on the BeyGOOD foundation’s Instagram said it best when they applauded the work Beyoncé is doing for the community as “doing more for Americans than the actual government.”
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