Tommy Marcus – the dude behind the @Quentin.Quarantino Insta account – has so far raised more than US $5.1 million (over AUD $7 million) via a GoFundMe to help evacuate Afghans who are being targeted by the Taliban.
“I have been working alongside humanitarian aid groups, decorated military veterans, and activists on the ground in Kabul, fighting to save people who otherwise have no chance at survival in the Taliban-occupied Kabul,” Marcus wrote.
“The individuals in question are high-value targets – Afghan men and women who have worked as human rights lawyers, champions of women’s and LGBTQ rights, journalists, government liaisons, artists, and interpreters – all of whom are at imminent risk of being executed by the Taliban, along with their families. We will be taking full family units.”
The initial plan was to raise US $550,000 for two flights. That goal quickly doubled, and before everyone knew it, the donations were piling up in the millions.
Now even more trips out of Afghanistan are set to be made, with any leftover funds going towards the International Women’s Media Foundation.
“We are completely blown away by the power of this fundraiser,” Marcus wrote in an update on Monday.
“Words cannot describe the impact that these funds will have and the lives we will be able to save.
“We are currently working with non-profits, NGOs, people on the ground in Kabul, and more to consolidate more manifests for the new flights we are now able to run.
“We are making sure everyone we know is accounted for and have proper names, identifications, and access to the airport. We are working with multiple groups to make sure those folks are vetted and sponsored.”
He added that most of the people already have a sponsor and that the immediate need is to evacuate them.
“After we are working with volunteers and refugee groups on what to do with the people once they are out of harm’s way,” Marcus wrote.
Say what you will about a guy who shot to unfathomable virality during the pandemic by sharing screenshotted tweets on Insta and who now calls himself a “meme artist”, but his intentions seem to be good.
It also seems to be a fair but more than what the Australian government has done so far.
