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Tyler Perry Is Donating $1 Million To Hurricane Harvey Relief Efforts

Photo: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage.
Tyler Perry has joined the ranks of celebrities who've pledge money to help those affected by Hurricane Harvey. Sandra Bullock, Miley Cyrus, Ruby Rose, the Kardashian-Jenners, and plenty of other stars have given donations to Harvey relief efforts.
Perry announced in a Facebook video Thursday that he's donating $1 million to help the hurricane's victims. He's donated money toward various relief organizations, but some fans aren't happy that part of Perry's donation is going toward Joel Osteen's church.
Osteen, the senior pastor at Houston's Lakewood Church, was criticized for sending hurricane victims to a different shelter rather than housing them at the church. Osteen told the Today show on Wednesday that his church was working with the city of Houston to help the victims.
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"Our church doors have always been open. In fact, we took people in right when the water started to recede, which was a day or two after the big storm hit," Osteen said on the Today show. "We work very closely with the city... They didn't need us as a shelter right then. And we coordinate with them all the time."
Perry also defended Osteen in his Facebook video. "I know there's been some controversy about Joel Osteen and him not opening the doors of the church,” Perry said in the video. "Let me tell you something: Joel and [his wife] Victoria are amazing people. There's no way they would lock people out of the church and not let people in for shelter. There were some safety concerns… I'm sending $250,000 to Lakewood to make sure that they can get all of the supplies people need, and I know that they will… That's the kind of person he is."
Another $250,000 of Perry's donation will go toward Rudy Rasmus, a.k.a. Beyoncé's pastor and the founder of Bread of Life, a non-profit organization in Houston. And Perry still hasn't decided where to donate the last $500,000, Us Weekly notes.
Some fans on Twitter aren't happy that Perry's donation includes Osteen's church. It sounds like Perry has thought it through, though. And if he says Osteen wants to help the hurricane victims, is his generous donation — to multiple causes — really something we should criticize?
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