Oprah Whines About Backlash Over Asking For Maui Wildfire Donations – ‘It’s Sad That We’re In This State In Our Country’

Final week, we reported that the billionaire Oprah Winfrey was being hit with backlash together with the multi-millionaire Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson for asking for donations to victims of the Maui wildfires regardless of solely every giving $5 million themselves. Now, Winfrey has damaged her silence to handle this backlash for the primary time, and let’s simply say she’s not glad about it.

🚨Breaking🚨
Oprah reacts to the backlash of her Folks’s Fund of Maui pic.twitter.com/v1Q0iEyY7N

— Malachi Maxey (@malachimaxeyusa) September 13, 2023

Winfrey Hit With Backlash

Daily Mail reported that Winfrey, 69, and Johnson, 52, posted a video to Instagram final week by which they requested followers to donate to the Folks’s Fund of Maui, saying that the cash could be instantly distributed to these affected by the fires within the historic city of Lahaina. Many have been livid, nevertheless, when the pair revealed they’d every donated solely $5 million, a small portion of their wealth given the truth that Winfrey reportedly has a internet value of $2.8 billion whereas Johnson is value an estimated $800 million.

“A billionaire and a millionaire asking YOU to donate YOUR cash?” one social media consumer commented, with one other including, “Lady you bought some nerve asking us working class individuals who can barely afford to place meals on the desk for our households to donate…why don’t you ask your millionaire/billionaire buddies to assist.”

“Math ain’t mathing with this one. You man’s actually have a lot cash…. You may donate it and make it again inside a yr,” one other consumer commented, with a fourth writing, “You’ve got billions. You may donate $100 million and nonetheless be as rich as earlier than donating. YOU give the cash.”

Backstory: Oprah And Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson Slammed For Asking Fans For Maui Fire Donations Despite Only Giving $10M Themselves

Winfrey Defends Herself

Winfrey went on “CBS Mornings” on Tuesday to defend herself whereas selling her new guide “Build the Life You Want: The Art and Science of Getting Happier.” When requested concerning the backlash that she and Johnson had been hit with, Winfrey admitted that it shocked her.

“Effectively, it is a actually nice level about being happier within the midst of an onslaught of being terrorized and vilified on-line,”  Winfrey mentioned. “I’ll say this. I got here out of this expertise with a lot extra compassion for younger children, as a result of I used to be considering, what if I didn’t actually know who I’m? It should take you out.”

“So all the on-line assaults, lies, conspiracy theories, actually took the main focus off of what was crucial factor, which is the individuals of Maui,” she continued. “So this concept took place as a result of I used to be on the bottom, speaking to plenty of individuals, attempting to determine how I can greatest assist.”

Winfrey defined that the son of CBS host Gayle King despatched her an article concerning the fund that the nation music legend Dolly Parton began to assist victims of the 2017 fires in Gatlinburg, Tennessee.

“I believed, ‘Whoa! That’s the thought. Getting the cash into the palms, instantly into the palms of the individuals – arrange the tip construction for that,’” Winfrey recalled. “We thought, as a result of each of us have given to charities our entire lives, that beginning the fund with $10 million could be an awesome thought. We’ll do what Dolly did, get different individuals to present cash after which we’ll put it instantly into individuals’s financial institution accounts.”

not oprah attempting to defend herself by dragging dolly parton into it she must shut up

— ren ミ☆ zara day (@mandorens) September 12, 2023

Associated: Oprah Blasted As A ‘Fraud’ For Decrying ‘White Privilege’ Despite Being A Billionaire Herself

Winfrey Shocked By Backlash

Winfrey, who owns not less than 13 properties on the Hawaiian islands, by no means noticed the potential backlash coming.

“I used to be so excited. I used to be so enthusiastic about it, after which I obtained up the following morning, and I noticed all of this vitriol, and I used to be, like, ‘Whoa, what occurred right here?’” she lamented. “That is what I wish to say. I wish to say that, to start with, so many individuals have been calling, asking, ‘The place can we give our cash to?’ So I believed, I’m going to present individuals a spot to present it.”

“We’re going to create one thing and I nonetheless assume it’s a extremely robust thought,” she continued. “Dolly Parton was proper. Placing cash instantly within the palms of the individuals is a major factor, and the mannequin that has been created, I’ll say that as of at present, 2,200 individuals have been cleared and verified, and people individuals are gonna get a discover from the Folks’s Fund of Maui and are gonna have the cash put into their account.”

As for the hate that she’s obtained, Winfrey mentioned that it made her “unhappy that we’re on this state in our nation.”

Try Winfrey’s full feedback on this within the video under, with the related portion beginning at across the 6:10 mark.

Sadly for Winfrey, this complete state of affairs exhibits how out of contact she is with actuality as a longtime member of the rich liberal elite. She will attempt to be like Dolly Parton all that she desires to, however ultimately, she will be able to’t maintain a candle to the nation music legend.