Michael Jordan has broken another record, and it has nothing to do with basketball.
On Monday, the Smithsonian Museum announced that the basketball legend has pledged $5 million to the museum’s new National Museum of African American History and Culture, making it the museum’s largest donation made by an athlete.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to support this museum,” Jordan said in a statement regarding the donation. “I also am indebted to the historic contributions of community leaders and athletes such as Jesse Owens, whose talent, commitment and perseverance broke racial barriers and laid the groundwork for the successful careers of so many African Americans in athletics and beyond.”
As part of the 53-year-old’s gift, Jordan will also donate his jersey worn during the 1996 NBA Finals to the museum’s Michael Jordan Hall sports section.
“His gift will enable our visitors to explore how sports were used to break barriers as a way to gain full participation in American society,” Museum Founding Director Lonnie G. Bunch III added in the statement.
Last month Jordan pledged $1 million to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and the Institute for Community-Police Relations to help “build trust and respect between communities and law enforcement,” he said in a statement to The Undefeated.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture is scheduled to open on Sept. 24.
Our 2024 Coverage Needs You
Already contributed? Log in to hide these messages.