Worthy Causes

(July, 2007)

I finally put up a non-exhaustive list of what I consider to be causes worthy of your time, money, and/or moral and verbal support. The easiest way for a problem to remain invisible is for people not to talk about it. One mistake Bob Geldof made in criticizing Live Earth by saying everyone already knows about global warming is forgetting that people already "know" about poverty in Africa as well. We already know about Darfur. We knew about Rwanda. But the one way to ensure inaction is to let an issue escape to the margins rather than keeping it in the front of our minds. The only way to ensure people don't forget is to keep talking. That's what Live Earth was about.

I am setting a rule this year for myself that for birthdays and Christmas/Yule, I really don't need any more 'stuff' and what I do need, I normally buy for myself. Instead, I am going to urge those who are on my gift list and those from whom I am likely to receive gifts, to rather select a worthy cause (one of these, or another) and make a donation instead or, if that is uncomfortable or impractical for whatever reason, to purchase goods from local businesses that practice fair trade and/or give proceeds to charities or just make something rather than buy something. The one exception I have to add to this is books... books are not in the same class as "stuff".

I know I've forgotten organizations - that's how I am with lists. So as I think of things, I'll add them. Feel free to make suggestions too. I've tried to choose causes and organizations that do not have specific political party orientations, but rather are organizations that work to help people. Of course, the organizations chosen reflect the issues that I feel are important - so you can't completely eliminate politics - but I mean I'm not putting specific political action groups, candidates, ect. on here.

Here's a brief explanation of each organization and why I think it's a worthy cause. Some portions of the descriptions are lifted right from the "about us" sections of websites, because, well, they can describe themselves a lot better and more concisely than I can:

Amnesty International: An independent non-governmental organization dedicated to the investigation, reporting, and prevention of human rights abuses around the world. AI is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion. It does not support or oppose any government or political system, nor does it support or oppose the views of the victims whose rights it seeks to protect. It is concerned solely with the impartial protection of human rights.

Arghand: I've posted about Arghand before. It's a cooperative of farmers in the Khandahar region of Afghanistan who make soaps out of local crops in an effort to provide a market for crops other than poppies. Arghand employs men and women and helps to provide economic stability to local farmers. Their soaps are available from various merchants across the US. Domus in NY is the only one I've seen so far that you can order online - and it's a cooperative, fair-trade shop. Win-win there.

ASPCA: Most of you know I have a much bigger heart when it comes to animals than when it comes to people. Maybe that's because a dog never hooked an enemy's nuts up to a car battery. The ASPCA helps rescue, care for, and find homes for homeless and abused animals, as well as investigates and prosecutes abuse and neglect. They provide informational services about pet safety, and were one of the only organizations that really pushed for emergency evacuation plans that included pets after the Katrina tragedy.

Habitat for Humanity: Habitat for Humanity helps to build thousands of homes in the US and abroad for people in need. The homes are built with volunteer labor, which brings the overall cost of construction down, providing affordable housing - these are not "give away" homes - they are made available to qualified applicants at affordable prices. You can donate money, or volunteer your time and labor. Though technically a religiously affiliated organization, they provide help and services to anyone in need.

Human Rights Campaign: The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality. HRC seeks to improve the lives of GLBT Americans by advocating for equal rights and benefits in the workplace, ensuring families are treated equally under the law and increasing public support among all Americans through innovative advocacy, education and outreach programs.

Live Earth S.O.S.: Different than the other organizations, Live Earth S.O.S. does not want donations or volunteers in the traditional sense. What they want is for each individual to recognize that the little things matter. They want us to change our habits and our consumption. To pay attention to how what we do affects the environment. The mission of the SOS campaign is to empower individuals to change their consumer behaviors and motivate corporations and political leaders to enact decisive measures to combat the climate crisis. The message of S.O.S. is that everyone, everywhere can and must "Answer the Call" to solve the climate crisis.

Millennium Promise: A bold initiative to end world poverty by 2025. The Millennium Promise sponsors selected villages in countries with relatively stable governments and helps develop sustainable solutions to poverty, disease, and hunger by providing economic aid, education, health care, and by respecting the local people's right to self-determination. One of the sister projects is to provide bed nets to help curb the spread of malaria in Africa.

National Coalition for the Homeless: Their mission is simple: end homelessness. The National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH) engages in public education, policy advocacy, and grassroots organizing focused on 4 areas: housing justice, economic justice, health care justice, and civil rights.

National Endowment of the Arts: The NEA is a public agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts, both new and established; bringing the arts to all Americans; and providing leadership in arts education. Established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government, the Endowment is the nation's largest annual funder of the arts, bringing great art to all 50 states, including rural areas, inner cities, and military bases.

National Public Radio: NPR (National Public Radio) is an internationally acclaimed producer and distributor of noncommercial news, talk, and entertainment programming. NPR and its affiliates are important because their news coverage is not beholden to any sponsors. They are funded by membership and public funds. Each NPR Member Station serves local listeners with a distinctive combination of national and local programming.

Project Ijtihad: We all know that Islamic extremism is a problem in the world. Most of us also know that they represent a small fraction of all Muslims. However, as Irshad Manji, in my opinion, rightly points out, moderate and reformist Muslims in the West, where they have freedom of expression, speech, and thought, are remaining silent. Project Ijtihad is a charitable initiative to promote the spirit of Ijtihad, Islam’s own tradition of critical thinking, debate and dissent. They support a positive vision of Islam that embraces diversity of choices, expression and spirituality and work to build the world’s most inclusive network of reform-minded Muslims and non-Muslim allies. There's a great MySpace page that includes open debates on various issues involving Islam, Muslims, religion in general, and anyone is invited to participate. The solution to this issue involves Muslims and non-Muslims speaking out against injustice together.

PBS: Similar to NPR, PBS provides non-commercial television broadcasting. This non–profit media enterprise owned and operated by the nation's 354 public television stations. A trusted community resource, PBS uses the power of noncommercial television, the Internet and other media to enrich the lives of all Americans through quality programs and education services that inform inspire and delight. Available to 99 percent of American homes with televisions and to an increasing number of digital multimedia households, PBS serves over 75 million people each week.

RAWA: RAWA is the oldest political/social organization of Afghan women struggling for peace, freedom, democracy and women's rights in fundamentalism-blighted Afghanistan since 1977. Yes, well before the Taliban and the war on terror, these brave women have worked to improve the lives of Afghan women for decades. Risking their own lives, during the brutal reign of the Taliban, RAWA activists would smuggle video and pictures of the conditions inside the country to the media. Now with the Taliban "gone" and renewed hope for progress, RAWA needs more help than ever.

Save Darfur: A coalition of private citizens, NGOs, and other organizations came together to draw awareness to the genocide in Darfur. There are many things we can do to help. Talk about the human rights violations with others, donate money for supplies, or help in the divestment campaign.

V-Day: V-Day is a global movement to stop violence against women and girls. It is a catalyst that promotes creative events to increase awareness, raise money and revitalize the spirit of existing anti-violence organizations. V-Day generates broader attention for the fight to stop violence against women and girls, including rape, battery, incest, female genital mutilation (FGM) and sexual slavery in the United States and internationally. Events benefiting V-day often, but not always, include performances of the Vagina Monologues.

Warm Up America: Here's one for all you knitters. Warm Up America takes donations of individual knit/crocheted squares or full blankets and donates them to victims of natural disasters, battered women's shelters, the homeless, and others in need. You can knit simple squares and send them in. Or you can knit entire blankets. There's also another organization similar to this called Mile of Hugs.

Women & Children First Bookstore: OK, yes, this is a Chicago-based business. I had to put it in there though, because it is a fantastic independent bookstore with some of the best selection of feminist, and GBLT-friendly titles and they're in danger of being put out of business. You can order books online... hint... hint...

Women for Afghan Women: Women for Afghan Women (WAW) is an organization of Afghan and non-Afghan women from the New York area who are committed to ensuring the human rights of Afghan women. They create safe forums where Afghan women can network, develop programs to meet their specific needs, and participate in human rights advocacy in the international sphere. They raises funds for the reconstruction of Afghanistan, particularly schools and health facilities for women and children. Recognizing that the ability to earn their living is fundamental to the empowerment of women, WAW supports the development of vocational training programs for women in Afghanistan who have been denied access to education and professional training.

Women for Women International: Women for Women International supports women in war-torn regions with financial and emotional aid, job-skills training, rights education and small business assistance so they can rebuild their lives. Women are often the invisible victims of war, but are among the most affected civilians in war torn regions.

New Additions (8/2007)

The Nature Conservancy: A leading conservation organization working around the world to protect ecologically important lands and waters for nature and people.

Kiva.org: Microloans to entrepreneurs in developing countries. Microloans are small amounts - a few hundred to a few thousand dollars, that help people start and maintain businesses and put them on the path to economic independence. Microloans are extremely helpful to all people in developing countries, but are specifically beneficial to women who often experience social and political barriers to economic independence.

Heifer International: Working to end poverty and hunger by providing sustainable resources to impoverished people. Donations are used to buy livestock for villages to provide food and other resources such as wool for clothes.

New Addition (9/2007)

Click to Give sites: Animal Rescue, World Hunger, Breast Cancer, International Literacy, Children's Health, and Rainforest Preservation groups all banded together to create the "click to give" sites. All you have to do is click the button and their sponsors give money toward each cause (food, shelter, teacher salaries, etc). Each has a shop where you can buy tangible things, such as Pawprint logo shirts for animal rescue, or fair-trade woven goods from people in developing countries. They also have intangibles, such as a donation to pay a teacher's salary in Afghanistan, buy books for kids in schools, sponsor a homeless animal, buy food for the hungry, etc. I have a feeling I will be doing a lot of shopping on this site this holiday season.