Today in class we had a great discussion about the recent Kony 2012 movement, and something Mr. O'Connor said really struck me. He said that many people hear of an issue in the world and immediately turn to their checkbooks, thinking, "How much do I have to make this check out for in order to forget about what's happening?"This is an idea I've been contemplating for a while. The fact that people, especially in our society, consider writing a check and donating money as the same thing as time and hard work spent on improving an unfortunate situation. This is the reason for the countless benefits held for charities. Money is thrown around during silent auctions, live auctions, and raffle games. You even have to pay to be on the list. And if you make a large enough donation, your name will be mentioned several times! Once they have donated, they seem to think that the issue is resolved, when in reality it takes much more than a check to get rid of the problem.
Colbert even satirized this concept in last night's episode of the Colbert Report during his interview with Katherine Boo (4:10-4:26) when he is talking about the slums in Mumbai, India. He asks Boo how much he has to pay in order to forget about the people in the slums, because if he thinks about them he'll want to pay more, and paying more will drain his bank account. Although he paints this in a comedic light, he makes me wonder: is it better to write a check for, say, $2,500 to a certain organization or is it better to spend a week or so during the summer helping to improve a third world country?
I like your question regarding whether traveling to another country helps more than writing a check. From a pure cost/benefit perspective. who truly benefits when someone buys a ticket to travel to another country to work there for a week?
ReplyDeleteThere are other concerns with charity-giving that you haven't raised, but might be fodder for another post. What would be the results if private charity was replaced by a government tax that gave to people in need? Would "charity" end up in the hands of avery different group of people in need?
Great post! I am also questioning Mr. Bolo's idea of who really benefits if you go to a country to do charity for a week. For example, this summer I am looking for something fun to do with a friend for a few weeks. We both suggested doing charity work somewhere relatively far away. We thought it would be a fun experience rather than writing off a check. I think that the people in need of the charity do benefit when someone travels to their country to do the work and I also think it's the other way around. Howver, to what degree, I don't know.
ReplyDeleteYou both make really good points!
ReplyDeleteMr Bolos- I responded to your two questions in my most recent blog post. Check it out!