October 18, 2011; Source: The Jewish Week | Alexander Soros, son of the politically visible and controversial philanthropist George Soros, has begun his own philanthropic career as of August with his a donation of a quarter million dollars to the Jewish Funds for Justice where he also sits on the board. JFJ is a foundation that supports grassroots organizations in low income communities.
This article provides a peek into his philanthropic stance that is both revealing and moving, describing for example his visit to the Queens office of Make the Road, an immigrant rights group that is a JFJ grantee: “There, Soros listened far more than he talked, walking quietly through the building and asking the circle of clients and staffers who had been convened for his benefit only one question: how the recession had affected them.”
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“My Jewish identity is intrinsically linked to philanthropy, whether to Jewish organizations or not,” said Soros. “We have an affinity with other minorities. That means a sense of responsibility, especially in light of the Holocaust.”
Soros feels that as a Jew he has a responsibility to respond to those who suffer exclusion and persecution. “Anyone who is a son or daughter of someone who was in hiding, or in a camp, it gives you a certain way of viewing things…I have a feeling of responsibility towards my father’s foundation, and his legacy…Therefore, I am there to help in any way I can. At the same time, it is important to me to be independent, and to engage in activities unrelated to my father.”—Ruth McCambridge