The Walton Family Has Little Interest in Charity
Four members of the Walton family, heirs to the Walmart fortune, have a combined wealth of close to $140 billion. How much do they give to their charitable foundation? An insultingly small amount.
A new report (funded by labor groups battling Walmart over its wages) examined how much money these Waltons—four of the ten richest people in America—donated to The Walton Foundation, their family's charity, in the past two decades. The answer: an exceedingly small amount. In the past *23 years*:
The total contributions from Jim Walton, Christy Walton, and the Walton family holding company (Walton Enterprises) to the Walton Family Foundation amount to $58.49 million,which is equivalent to:
−.04% of the four Walmart heirs' net worth.
−Less than one week's worth of the Walmart dividends the Walmart heirs will receive this year.
−Less than the estimated value of Rob Walton's collection of vintage sports cars.
Contrast that with fellow billionaires Warren Buffett and Bill Gates, who have given 27% and 36% of their wealth to charity, respectively.
It is worth noting that the family's foundation is funded in large part by financial vehicles specifically created to help the family avoid paying estate and other taxes, effectively showing that the Walton family has little interest in charity for charity's sake—charity to them is interesting only to the extent that it can help keep more money in their own family's pockets.
It is also worth noting that one of the Walton Family Foundation's favorite charities is Alice Walton's opulent art museum, which is a piss poor choice of charities.
It is also worth noting that all of the employees whose labor makes the Walton family so rich have bad, low-wage jobs.
