Split image of Tyler Perry and South Carolina resident Josephine Wright, whom he vowed to support in her legal battle to keep her home.Photo:Stefanie Keenan/Getty, WSAV
Stefanie Keenan/Getty, WSAV
Tyler Perryis standing behind Josephine Wright, an elderly woman locked in a legal battle over her home.
The 93-year-old South Carolinian told local news outletWSAVthat developers are harassing and attempting to force her to sell her property.
A grandmother to 40, great-grandmother to 50, and great-great-grandmother to 16 children, Wright told WSAV that her Hilton Head home is “where I want to be at this age” — and she’s going to resist anyone who gets in the way of that.
“I’ve pretty much been a fighter all my life,” Wright told the outlet.
Now, an investment group developing the land behind Wright’s house has filed a lawsuit alleging that parts of the home are on their property, WSAV reported.
“I guess they figured I would become so unnerved with the harassment that I would say take it,” she said of the developers. “But they don’t know me. I am here to fight for what I have.”
A representative for the investment group did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
Word of the resilient South Carolinian’s plight has now reached Hollywood, catching the attention of filmmaker andphilanthropistPerry, 53.
When he saw WSAV’s coverage of Wright’s struggle, he shared it on Instagram — andpledged his support.
The actor quoted Wright in his caption (“I’ve pretty much been a fighter all my life”) and wrote, “Ms. Wright, please tell where to show up and what you need to help you fight.”
Stars likeMeek MillandFantasia Barrinocommended Perry’s support, and some pledged their own.
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This isn’t the first time Perry, who received the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2021 Oscars, has used his wealth to help senior citizens save their homes.
In February, a sourcetold PEOPLEthat Perry donated $750,000 to help prevent the displacement of low-income seniors in the Atlanta.
Intended to freeze property taxes for a group of elderly residents of the Georgia capital over the next 20 years, the donation will also include roughly $500,000 donated every year over the next five years, the source said.
source: people.com
