Singer Erykah Badu has announced that she’s donating a portion of the proceeds from her ticket sales to the African American 490 Challenge, which raises money to help get the over 11,300 untested rape kits in Detroit tested. It’s no secret that Detroit has a massive backlog of untested rape kits. These kits, which cost $490, hence the name of the challenge, are used to help identify rape suspects. They sat untested for a couple of years before being discovered in a Detroit police warehouse in 2009.
Of the 11,300 kits found, over 10,000 have already been tested. Any money that’s donated to the challenge from here on out goes into testing the rest of the kits as well as the ongoing investigation into the results. Thanks to the money, Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy has been able to secure her own prosecution team that only looks into investigating the rapes.
The 490 Challenge also stands to gain more money thanks to a “$100-per-ticket reception before the concert and $1,000-per-person VIP reception with Badu after the show,” according to the Detroit Free Press article about the concert.
It’s really great to see music artists get involved with the affairs of the places in which they play. Badu’s legendary talent is sure to draw a big crowd, and thanks to her kindness, the 490 Challenge will (hopefully) benefit greatly.
(via Vulture, image via Flickr/Xtina L)
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