The problem with charity is complex and enduring, perhaps as complex as people are. Whether caused by nature or nurture; whether fueled by choice or circumstance, people have always needed help from each other. What should be simple, especially at the personal level, is what to do when the innate drive to help another human being in need presents itself. Yet simplicity is not often the case.
For example, we were on a trip when we ran into a man who was asking for food. We both felt eager to help and would have enjoyed being able to do so, but we could not find any restaurants or convenience stores nearby where we could buy food. This made us uncomfortable. The discomfort came from our uncertainty as to what the real impact of a cash handout would be. The problem of charity, for us, was the complexity and uncertainty of a cash handout in directly addressing someone’s need.
Rightly or wrongly, we didn’t feel comfortable giving him cash so we apologized to him and went our separate ways. After that situation, we started keeping water, crackers, granola bars or anything that could be easily and quickly given to those who needed food (here are some things others do). Others keep gift cards for gas or fast food, or have found other techniques to address these situations. The problem with charity is having the desire but the means to directly address a need.
The Problem With Charity
- Complexity. There are a lot of questions and unknowns that make giving complex: Should I help or are there other resources that this person should use? Are the things they are telling me true? Am I simply enabling an addiction? Is this person making a livelihood from handouts? How much should I give?
- Dishonesty. The knowledge that some people take advantage of the good-will of others is discouraging and unmotivating.
- Scarcity of resources. Individual giving makes up a significant part of a personal budget–especially unplanned giving. A gift must meaningfully impact an essential need in order to be justified.
- Sustainability. Managing money is tricky for everyone even when things are going well. Will the gift you give be part of an overall long-term improvement in the life of the recipient? Is it a “hand-up” or simply a “hand-out”? Direct giving, both in its successes and in its failures, is a well-documented area of economic study. The successes usually involve some sort of accountability and support to enable lasting change.
The food and beverages in my car are examples of an attempt to solve the problem with charity. Governmental and charitable agencies provide many of the goods and services that are necessary for human life. Yet, there seems to continue to be unmet needs. Simply institutionalizing charitable giving also cuts the average person off from an essential aspect of a meaningful human life. A wide gap exists between the institutional charity and the makeshift systems in our cars. We need to bridge this gap. When it is, the power of mobilized individual altruism can transform lives.
We need better options
People need options to give directly as individuals, without the impersonal, distanced methods of an institution, but also without the many problems of giving cash. Cash can equally harm or to help a person and their community. We aren’t as quick to invest in others when we’re not sure that our cash will help them. The reality is that reinforcing frameworks of trust, especially when extending beyond one’s group or community, creates the structure necessary for charity. Knowing what a need is and meeting it without the barriers of distrust, shame, or fear is the basis of economic and social growth. The simple and personal encounter gives provides a sorely neglected opportunity for human recognition, dignity, altruism, and relationship.