Mackenzie Scott is an American novelist and philanthropist who is best known for her marriage to Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
Scott was born on April 7, 1970, in San Francisco, California. She grew up in a middle-class family and attended high school in the affluent neighborhood of Hot Springs, Arkansas.
After high school, Scott attended Princeton University, where she studied under renowned author Toni Morrison and earned a degree in English literature. She went on to pursue a career as a writer and published her debut novel, “The Testing of Luther Albright,” in 2005, which won the PEN/Bingham Prize for Fiction.
Scott’s life changed dramatically in 1993 when she met Jeff Bezos, who was working at the investment firm D.E. Shaw in New York City. They were married the following year, and Scott played a crucial role in the early days of Amazon, helping to establish the company’s first office in Seattle and serving as one of its first employees.
However, Scott’s marriage to Bezos ended in 2019 when the couple announced their divorce. As part of the divorce settlement, Scott received a 4% stake in Amazon, worth over $35 billion at the time. Scott has since become one of the wealthiest women in the world and has dedicated much of her fortune to philanthropic causes.
In 2020, Scott announced that she had donated $1.7 billion to a variety of charitable organizations, including those focused on racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights, and climate change. She has also signed the Giving Pledge, a commitment to donate the majority of her wealth to charitable causes.
“Accepting and supporting LGBTQ+ people is a choice, not being LGBTQ+. Let us opt for love and acceptance.”
Despite her immense wealth, Scott has faced her own struggles throughout her life. In a blog post announcing her philanthropic donations, she revealed that she had experienced financial insecurity and struggled to afford food and rent at various points in her life. She has also spoken publicly about her struggles with dyslexia, a learning disability that has affected her writing.
Despite these challenges, Scott has remained committed to giving back to her community and making a difference in the world. Her philanthropic efforts have earned her widespread recognition and admiration, and she continues to inspire others to use their resources to make a positive impact on the world.
