Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson slammed for asking donations for Maui wildfire victims while giving less than 0.5% of their net worth
MAUI, HAWAII: Following the Maui, Hawaii wildfires, Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson have received criticism for encouraging their followers to give donations.
The wildfire which swept from August 8 has claimed 115 lives so far with around 385 people still unaccounted for, Maui county authorities announced in a news release.
What is Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson's 'People's Fund of Maui'?
On August 31, the two shared a video with their millions of Instagram followers.
In the video Winfrey was standing with Johnson as they presented "People's Fund of Maui," which was to raise money for those affected by the tragedy.
View this post on Instagram
"With disaster like this the number one need is money," Johnson says in the video along with Winfrey.
Both stressed that the money would "go directly into the hands of the affected" and that it was safe.
How many people donated to the Maui wildfire victims?
The Winfery-Johnson's 'People's Fund for Maui' received a good response.
Winfery announced in the following video that 10,000 people had donated.
"It takes a village and I’m so proud to be a part of the village bringing aid to the Maui residents affected by the wildfires with @peoplesfundofmaui," Winfrey captioned her Instagram video.
"From the 10,000 people who have personally donated to the organizations who have been helping since day one to the community leaders who offered their insights to the friends calling me saying they too want to support, we thank you," she added.
She said there were thousands affected who had signed up for the assistance.
View this post on Instagram
How much is Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson's net worth?
Scores of fans have criticized Hollywood for reportedly having a combined net worth of billions and that they had donated less than 0.5% of their total wealth, as per Insider.
Forbes estimates that Winfrey, who owns more than 2,000 acres of land in Hawaii, has a Forbes-estimated net worth of $2.5 billion as of Tuesday while Johnson was worth $250 million as of February 2022.
He announced in a separate Instagram video, "I donated $5 million." He said it was the "deadliest wildfire to hit America in 100 years."
Considering that the same amount was donated by Winfrey, the pair contributed to just 0.36% of their combined estimated net worth of $2.77 billion, as per Insider.
View this post on Instagram
How did fans react to Oprah Winfrey and Dwayne Johnson's donation campaign for Maui?
"Why don't you, Oprah, and your over-rich friends save Maui," a user commented on Johnson's Instagram video.
"This is the most out of touch thing I've ever seen in my life. SELL YOUR LAND TO THE PPL OF MAUI," one wrote on Winfrey's post.
Another wrote, "Math ain't mathing with this one. You guy's literally have so much money…. You can donate it and make it back within a year."
"Are you, the super wealthy, donating or just asking the general public to when none of us can even afford groceries ourselves?" another one wrote.