Detroit group's Social Justice Challenge app offers creative way to give back

FOX 2 - A Detroit area group started a website to try to help during the COVID-19 challenge and now they are helping in a very different way. 

Steve Silverman joins us to talk about a website he started for COVID-19 and to make sure people had resources and a way to give back. 

Charity online for Covid and then pivoted to social justice.  Charity challenge incorporated How did it start?

Steven Silverman: "Our initial goal was to partner with 10 organizations that were focused primarily on Covid relief and then to incorporate that with a couple of corporate sponsors, that would match donations on the site. Sixty days after we launched, take us to about 10 days ago, we decided as a result of everything that was going on in the world today, social justice being at the forefront, why don't we take the platform that we built -and pivot for the moment - to social justice."

FOX 2: And after the tragic death of George Floyd, so many people felt helpless and wanted to do something. You are making it easy for people to give back in a very creative way.

Silverman: "What we've built, to better explain it in the last 60 days, is basically a GoFundMe page or website/platform that in addition to having your names run on a board, you are able to engage with the site by posting photos that you expressing yourself. So it could be a photo of yourself or a family member, in this instance it is a photo of George Floyd or a Black Lives Matter logo, whatever it may be. It's basically a virtual board that's posted on our website, both desktop and mobile where you'll be able to go directly to the site and select one of five organizations currently and it will probably go to about 10 when we go live here and immediately upon check out, receive a tax donation receipt from our organization, listing the benefactors or the organization that you chose."

FOX 2: "You can share this post with everyone.  Like we do on social media but with a good way to give back.  simply, how can they do this?"

Silverman: "You would go to the SocialJusticeChallenge.com on the desktop or mobile site. When you get to the site, we have already pre-vetted the organizations that your money would be donated to. Those organizations currently are the Detroit Justice Center, the Detroit Battle Fund, Humble Design, The Empowerment Plan and we have another few to be announced shortly. Once you get to the site you'll see squares posted on our virtual board and on the board and you can select which square you want to buy, suggested donations is $10 but you can donate as much as you would like above $10. Immediately upon checking out, you will select which photo you want to upload and which charity or donation you want to donate to, come to submit your payment and you're done."

The website is https://www.socialjusticechallenge.com/