Chance the Rapper (Chancelor Johnathan Bennett), fresh off of winning three Grammy Awards had a sit-down meeting with Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner about the $215 million budget deficit at Chicago Public Schools. After his meeting, Chance was not satisfied, saying, “The governor gave me a lot of vague answers in our meeting.” He went on to add a memorandum to the governor, “Do your job.”
If funding from the state does not come, Chicago Public Schools says they will have to close their doors 13 days early.
In lieu of the additional funding provided by the governor, Chance felt a duty to step up and help the children of Chicago, the place he was born and raised. Not only did he donate $1 million, he challenged other businesses to match his donations.
Joe’s Perspective: I admire anyone who puts their money where their mouth is, so to speak. Chance is sending a message to the state government and a message to corporate America – our kids are worth it. Lots of people shake their heads and make snide comments. However, Chance said follow my lead and make a difference today. For that, I give Chance the Rapper and A+.
Your Turn: What are your thoughts and reactions to this story?
He is an example for all. He did not become self-centered because of his fame and his money. Instead, he gave back to the community where he was born and raised.
I think what Chance did was extremely compassionate and thoughtful towards the kids of Chicago. This article got the message right on when saying Chance was sending a message to America to invest more in education and kids are our future.
I love Chance the Rapper he has found success in a much different way from traditional music artists. And with the fame he has stayed humble through it and this is another example of how he is giving back to the community. He has made a lot of money and instead of becoming selfish and using it all for himself he uses the money in order to give back to other people. He is a very admirable person.
This story makes me very happy and inspires me. I have a lot of respect for Chance the Rapper after reading this story and hope this inspires more people to be like him
I think what chance is doing is very admirable, after such success with his album he decided to reach out to his community instead of focusing on more “success.” Chance is changing many lives with his donation because kids would be in a safe environment where they can excel their education for a better future. Chance is also sending a message to the rest of America that we don’t have to be in involve in politics to make a change and that we shouldn’t wait for change when we are capable of doing it ourselves.
I think that Chance the rapper cares more about others than himself. Giving to something even if you get nothing out of it shows strength and philanthropy. I hope that more business men and women do the same thing and match or give more than Chance’s donation.
Giving back to the community that helped shape you as an individual is a wonderful gift. Chance the rapper is going above and beyond to help the people who need it the most. Anyone can help out, and chance is a perfect roll model for sharing the wealth.
I think that Chance is awesome for this. He is a true leader and instead of boasting about how much money he makes, he gave back to his home town by supporting education.
I love it that chance is giving back to the city where he grew up. It is a great quality to be able to become selfless and give such a massive amount of money to Chicago schools. He is trying to give Chicago students a better future and make Chicago a better city from it.
My thoughts and reactions to this story are that Chance is nice and he cares about the education of others.
Chance is a very caring person, who not only impacted Chicago public schools, but has influenced people all over America through his music. The fact that he is a rapper, and is donating his money to a good cause is inspiring and humbling, not many rap-artists would do that voluntarily.