The sporting community is a tight-knit group, and combined with the power of Twitter and other platforms, it can create quite the influence on society in generating awareness on a plethora of topics such as social issues or major emergencies.
Right now, the city of Houston is being victimized by the rising floodwater caused by Hurricane Harvey. Eight people have been confirmed dead because of the catastrophic flooding, and that number is sadly expected to rise.
Yesterday, J.J. Watt, who has a combined 6.59 million followers between Instagram and Twitter, sent out a powerful message to the citizens of the city, and announced he’d created a relief fund to benefit victims of the Category 4 hurricane. The Texas defensive end kick started the fund by donating $100,000 with a goal in mind of doubling that.
That ambition was quickly shattered, and with the assistance of Chris Paul donating $50,000 – who was traded the Houston Rockets this offseason – the fund shot up to over $500,000.
As of Monday night Watt’s endeavour is approaching the $1million mark, which the Houston Texan pegged as the new goal after witnessing a widespread amount of support. You can donate to Watt’s pledge here.
Paul’s new teammate Clint Capela is using his Twitter page as springboard for emergency crews to help victims of the flood be rescued.
Maple Leafs centre Nazem Kadri‘s “Nazem Kadri Foundation” is currently accepting donations for the natural disaster in and around America’s fourth biggest city.
Players aren’t the only ones chipping in. Texans team owner Bob McNair donated $1million to the United Way of Greater Houston Flood Relief Fund. Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander, donated $4 million to the mayor of Houston’s relief campaign.
The Houston Astors will host the Texas Rangers in Tampa because of the hurricane.
Comedian Kevin Hart is helping out and has challenged other celebrities to step up and donate.
In national emergencies like a devastating hurricane, the power of social media can be harnessed in an extremely advantageous and astronomical manner, instead of spewing vitriol and negatvity we often see online. We applaud all athletes and teams that have stepped up, and it’s very encouraging to see people come together aiding those in need considering what’s transpired in the world recently.
