Taylor Swift to give money to foundation for sexual assault victims

The organization's CEO said it will be a "generous financial investment."

ByABC News
August 17, 2017, 10:08 AM

— -- Taylor Swift has begun to make good on her promise to donate money to organizations that help sexual assault victims defend themselves, after a jury sided with the pop star in her sexual assault trial against former deejay David Mueller.

Swift will be making a donation to actress Mariska Hargitay's Joyful Heart Foundation, among other organizations, Joyful Heart's CEO Maile M. Zambuto told The Huffington Post on Wednesday.

“Taylor is aware of the Joyful Heart Foundation and follows our work,” Zambuto said in the interview. “Her team got in touch with me and we talked a lot about her commitment, all along throughout this ordeal, to wanting to be of service to survivors.”

The organization tweeted a link to the story, with the comment, "@taylorswift13's courage & generous investment in our work send a powerful message to survivors: you are not alone."

Joyful Heart was founded in 2004 by "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" star Hargitay, who became aware of the scope of sexual assaults in the U.S. in preparation for a role.

Zambuto did not reveal the amount of Taylor's donation but characterized the donation as an “extremely generous financial investment in the movement to end sexual violence.”

"I think it was really important to see someone like Taylor to stand up to her abuser so publicly because there’s so much secrecy and shame associated with sexual assault,” Zambuto said. “Taylor had a choice to do this quietly-- to risk less -- and instead, she took this path as a survivor and as a symbol of strength and a source for so many survivors who feel really alone.”

Hargitay was featured in Taylor's all-star "Bad Blood" video.

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