GM and Nissan each donate $100k+ to Haiti relief effort *UPDATE

Both General Motors and Nissan North America have announced they will be donating over $100,000 each to aid the earthquake relief effort in Haiti. If you haven't seen the news lately, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti on January 12 near Port-au-Pince, killing tens of thousands of people (maybe over 100,000) and destroying the country's infrastructure. Governments and companies from all over the world have pledged aid for the victims and this broken nation, but so far GM and Nissan's American arm are the lone representatives of the U.S. auto industry.
GM pledged $100,000 straight up to the American Red Cross relief fund through its General Motors Foundation and has also added a direct link on employees' computer desktops to the Red Cross disaster fund. Nissan is giving a $25,000 cash donation, another $5,000 from Nissan Canada, matching employee contributions up to $25,000 for another $50,000 and giving $52,000 to Habitat for Humanity to help rebuild 13 homes in Haiti.

Just as some cynics did when automakers pledged money and supplies after Hurricane Katrina and the Indian Ocean tsunami, one could argue there's an ulterior motive to these gifts of charity, but we're quite sure the Haitians could care less and just appreciate the life-changing money. If you'd like to donate to the American Red Cross, click here.

*UPDATE - Toyota announced just today that its companies operating in the Americas will donate a total of $500,000 to be divided among the American Red Cross, Save the Children and Doctors Without Borders.

[Sources: General Motors, Nissan | Image: Angel Valentin/Getty]

Share This Photo X