Billionaire Democratic donor George Soros has pledged to donate $10 million from his personal foundation to combat a rise in hate crimes linked to what he calls President-elect Donald Trump’s “incendiary rhetoric,” the Hill reports.
Soros, a Holocaust survivor and business magnate, said in an interview with the New York Times that he was “deeply troubled” by the rise in hate crimes since the election, including Nazi swastikas and other graffiti spray-painted in public places.
Soros told the newspaper that “dark forces … have been awakened” by the election and that “we must do something to push back against what’s happening here.”
Soros said his donation was not about the President-elect himself, but about holding Trump and his rhetoric partially responsible for the rise in hate crimes in recent weeks.
“Certainly it got inflamed as a result of the campaign, and it broke out really afterwards,” he said.
According to the NYT, the $10 million donation will go towards civil rights organizations so they can come up with ways to stop the rise of violence.
Part of the money will also go towards developing ways to better track hate crimes.
Trump has condemned the rise in hate crimes following his election, saying he is “saddened” by the reports.
Soros has also reportedly wanted to start a liberal-leaning version of the conservative watchdog group Judicial Watch, but there is no word on what the organization’s name will be or any other details on the organization yet, the Daily Caller reported.