[Source: ESSENCE.com]
Erykah Badu is using her star power to raise funds for an important cause: finding justice for women who were victims of sexual assault.
The songstress, in conjunction with the Right Productions company, will donate proceeds from her upcoming concert in Detroit to the African-American 490 Challenge. The 490 Challenge, in partnership with the Michigan Women’s Foundation, is leading a campaign to raise money for the testing of over 11,300 untested rape kits found in a Detroit Police Department storage unit in 2009. According to The Detroit Free Press, the donated funds will be allocated to cover the $490 cost of testing each kit and further investigating the results of each test.
This announcement marks one of two positive developments in recent weeks, as it comes on the heels of news of a group of Black men from the area committing to get involved as well.
Wayne County prosecutor Kym Worthy is grateful to have Erykah and others getting involved to see to it that the women connected to the rape cases receive justice. “This is a huge day for Enough SAID/AA490,” she said in a statement. “Everyone knows that Erykah Badu is a major, major talent in the music and song-writing industry. For her to lend her name, talent and time to this work is nothing short of a miracle. Justice for these forgotten sexual assault victims has been given a phenomenal assist.”
Erykah Badu is set to perform at the Chene Park Amphitheatre in Detroit in August 12.
