Should we “stop giving our junk to the poor”?

Last updated on: December 28, 2015 at 2:59 pm by Jane the Actuary

Should we “stop giving our junk to the poor”? 2015-12-28T14:59:39-06:00 Jane the Actuary

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That’s the call in an article at Aleteia, “Why We Need to Stop Giving Our Junk to the Poor,” the premise of which is that we shouldn’t be donating “junk” to the poor and consigning them to stained and ripped clothing, but should instead donate items that are lightly worn and in good condition, that would truly brighten the spirits of their recipients.

Now, there are broader issues such as the fact that donations to second-hand stores are not the same thing as direct provision of clothing to the poor; the donation is to the mission of the thrift store in question, since the store sells the donated goods to anyone who comes in their doors, and uses the profit for charitable purposes (or, if you’re Savers, uses the profit as it wishes, and gives the designated charity a small sum per household when making collection runs).

It’s not clear from the article whether the author is, in fact, actually referring to donations to causes where the goods are given directly to needy recipients, but it seems unlikely, as those types of charities are generally very specific, such as collecting good quality “business dress”-type clothes to serve as interview suits, or collecting maternity clothes or baby clothes for a crisis-pregnancy center, and there’s no mistaking what is and isn’t appropriate. These donations aren’t made as a result of a closet clean-out (unless your closet is full of maternity and baby clothes that you’ve been holding onto “just in case” but that probably shouldn’t wait all the way until menopause to make their way to the local crisis pregnancy center).

With respect to thrift stores, to be sure, there are real concerns about what happens to the items that are donated. Are the customized t-shirts (e.g., for the countless 5Ks and kids sports teams and clubs) actually responsibly recycled, or are they shipped off to Africa, and, if so, does that keep a child from going naked or does it destroy local textile industries? Recently the Chicago Tribune reported (google search link here) that (at least some) thrift stores have stopped accepting TV donations, because they don’t sell and have to be hauled away. Likewise, some stores refuse stuffed animals, because there are too many of them out there and they wouldn’t sell all they’d take in; others do accept them, but I suspect have to discard those that don’t sell. And at the local Goodwill, they don’t seem to think too long and hard about whether the pieces are all there for a game or a toy or a home appliance, so you certainly shouldn’t donate any of these items making an assumption that they’ll do anything other than put it on the shelf, see if it sells, and trash it if not.

So the core principle is still: don’t buy stuff you don’t need. That’s true for stuffed animals. For t-shirts that are souvenirs of an event. And for no end of other items.

But that’s not the principle thrust of the article, which seems like it would be better expressed in terms of food pantry donations and types of charitable donations more generally speaking, since the premise doesn’t work with indirect “thrift shop” donations.

Consider two sets of baskets donated to a food pantry. The one consists of brand-name items, special treats, maybe organic, perhaps even some rib-eye steak if the food pantry is equipped to handle fresh meat. The other was purchased at Aldi — and none of their “Specially Selected” line, either. Just basics: maybe some pasta and sauce, some canned tuna, some vegetables.

Which donor did a better job of caring for the poor?

The first basket gives one recipient a lot of joy, and lifted spirits. But the second basket, for the same price, stretches further.

I suppose it boils down to a more general question: when you make your charitable donations, do you focus on meeting the basic human needs of as many people as possible, or do you do more to “bring joy” to smaller numbers, and, more specifically, to those near you — with donations, say, to causes such as symphony tickets for the poor, or prom for poor teens, or “make a wish”-type events? Or, even with respect to these latter “special treat” donations, do you maximize your donation by giving dresses to 5 girls vs. a full “night out” to one? Do you, in participating in “adopt-a-family”-type events at Christmastime, provide a generous Christmas to one family, or a modest Christmas to multiple? And so on.

Thoughts, readers?

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