LOS ANGELES – US actress Sandra Bullock has donated $1 million to help victims of Japan’s earthquake and tsunami crisis, the latest celebrity to pledge aid, the American Red Cross said Thursday. The contribution, described as from Bullock and her family, came after the US aid agency announced it had given $10 million to the Japanese Red Cross to help after last Friday’s quake.
“The American Red Cross is extremely grateful for this generous support from Sandra Bullock and her family,” it said in a statement. Bullock has one child, a boy she adopted shortly after announcing that she was divorcing her TV-personality husband of five years amid reports he was unfaithful. “This contribution is vitally important as the Red Cross works to provide critical assistance and essential relief items in this time of urgent need for so many people in Japan,” it added.
Other celebrities who have stepped in include Lady Gaga who raised $250,000 in 48 hours by selling red and white wristbands bearing the message “We Pray for Japan” for $5 a piece via her merchandise website. Rock band Linkin Park also began selling T shirts, designed by band member Mike Shinoda, whose father is Japanese-American, to raise money for Japan’s victims. In January 2010, Bullock donated $1 million to help victims of Haiti’s earthquake.
Sandra Bullock donates $1m for Japan crisis
