Tyler Perry continues to make himself available when he's needed most.
The film mogul's latest outreach will benefit the family of Rayshard Brooks, an Atlanta man who was shot and killed by police last Friday.
According to 11Alive, Perry will pay the college tuition for Brooks' four children. The children include three girls, who are ages 8, 2 and 1. The other child is Brooks' stepson, who is 13 years old. Brooks' 8-year-old daughter celebrated her birthday the day her father was killed, 11 Alive reported.
Perry is also paying for Brooks' funeral. The family thanked the film mogul during a press conference on Monday.
"Support like that, people who are actually in the community that love the community that want healing, and families like this should never have to go through something like this. It’s a step forward, and we want to thank him,” Brooks' family attorney Chris Stewart said.
According to 11Alive, Perry's film studio is located about four miles away from the Wendy's where Brooks was killed. The community had been organizing mass protests after the death of George Floyd, and now the demonstrations continue as the community demands justice for Brooks as well.
The 27-year-old Atlanta resident was sleeping in his car at a Wendy's when somebody called the police and reported a man blocking other cars in line at the drive-thru, as Blavity previously reported. Police said Brooks failed a sobriety test and tried to escape with one of their Tasers when they fired shots and struck him in the back.
Perry has a long history of philanthropy. Last year, he covered the rent for four children who were in danger of being evicted after their mother was shot and killed. In the same year, the actor rescued an Atlanta couple who were stuck in Mexico because they couldn't pay their hospital bill. Perry has also discussed his plans to build a compound in his Atlanta studio that would help homeless women, displaced LGBTQ+ youth and human trafficking victims.
In April, the Atlanta resident left a $500 tip for each of the 42 employees at a Houston's restaurant in Atlanta, totaling $21,000.
Perry spoke out against racial injustice in a video essay published by People on Wednesday.
"I’m exhausted from all the hate and the division, the vitriol that I see online from one to another," he said. "I’m exhausted from seeing these kinds of senseless murders play out over and over again with no changes in our society," he said.
The producer especially noted the tragedy of Floyd and how disturbed he was when he saw the officer kneeling on the man's neck for over eight minutes.
“When I saw that video, I had so many raw, guttural emotions," Perry said. "I felt for him and his family, I felt for all of us as Black people, I felt for my 5-year-old son. As I watched with tears in my eyes, it brought back a flood of years of emotions from carrying what feels like the weight of racism on my neck.”
