Social Justice vs. Charity

[Sapphire Blue]

SOCIAL JUSTICE vs. CHARITY
THROUGH OUR FINGERS
Ronald Stanley, O.P.

"Two men were fishing in a river. Late in the afternoon they started cooking some of the fish they had caught. Suddenly they heard the cries of a man being swept down the river. Immediately the men jumped into the river, swam out to the man, and were gradually able to pull him ashore. As they were on shore catching their breath, they heard the cries of a woman being swept down the river. They jumped back into the water, made their way out to the woman, and slowly brought her to shore. They were exhausted but happy to have saved both people. Then they heard to cries of a child being swept downstream. One of the men started back into the water to get the child; the other held back. "Aren't you going to save the child?" asked the first. "You go get the child," responded the second, "I'm going to go upstream to find out why so many people are falling into the river."

Charity is happy to spend all day pulling victims out of the river. Social justice asks: why are so many people falling into the river? Is there a pathway or a bridge in need of repair? Is there someone throwing people into the river? When there is a pattern of people repeatedly falling victim, social justice seeks to discover and remedy the root causes of the problem.

Charity does the important work of meeting the immediate needs of suffering people, for food, clothing, housing, medicine, etc. Most everyone today approves and praises charity.

Social justice, on the other hand, dares to ask troubling questions: if the earth's resources are meant to meet the needs of all the earth's children, why are 20% of the world's population consuming over 80% of the earth's resources, leaving 80% of the world living in misery? Isn't it only just that the privilege few live more simply, so that the masses might simply live?

(snip)

Our politicians smooth the pathways and bridges of the privileged, to the neglect of the poor. Little wonder then that so many of the poor keep falling into the river. Their falling is not simply an accident. They are not "falling through the cracks." They are falling through our fingers.

Continued @ http://www.ramapo.edu/studentlife/ministry/catholic_Ministry/Articles/social_justice.htm

[etherealtruth]

1. Thank you!

[Stargazer99]

2. If society took a good look at what causes poverty

it might scare the hell out of them because it would mean many accepted ideas would be proven incorrect and changes would have to be made to improve the lot of vast humanity even in the US.
Those who have power and wealth do not want to look at the problem and correct it because it would impact their privileged position in society.

[fasttense]

3. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish

and you lose your market base. :)

[Warpy]

4. Try to teach a man to fish without first feeding him a fish

and he'll drop dead of starvation with the pole in his hand.

[bobbolink]

9. Exactly! Unfortunately, that quote is now used to justify all kinds of negect.

thank you for pointing it out! :hi:

[Giant Robot]

5. Give a man a fish and he eats for a day

Teach a man to fish and he eats for a lifetime. Unfortunately he needs, a rod and reel, bait, access and transportation to a lake, an adequate supply of fish, healthcare to ensure he is healthy enough to go fishing, a home to cook it in, someone to regulate what gets dumped in the lake so that the fish do not become contaminated, etc.

[bobbolink]

10. Great additions! Thank you!

:hi: :thumbsup: :hi:

[moc]

6. This is wonderful.

Thank you so much.

[Sapphire Blue]

8. I think so, too.

:kick:

[applegrove]

7. Nice parable.

[bobbolink]

11. Great article! Saved, printed! Shades of Archbishop Romero, who I've

been quoting a lot this week..

"When I helped poor people, I was called a saint. When I asked why they were poor, I was called a communist." Archbishop Oscar Romero

[babylonsister]

12. Happy to be the 5th rec! Thanks, S B; this is a good and

important article. Seems we need a lot more concentration on social justice in this country and the world.

[Sapphire Blue]

13. Thanks, babylonsister!

:hi:

[Wiley50]

14. Disability has made me a Socialist

I paid into Social Security for 30 years. More than enough to qualify for SS when
I'm of age.

When I became disabled, I did not immediately apply for disability. I keep dreaming
that I would get well enough to work again and I kept trying, unsuccessfully.

I also intuitively knew it would be a bunch of red tape that would be too much hassle.

When I did finally break down and apply, it took 3 and 1/2 years, with legal assistance.

What I did not know is that there is a loophole in the Govts. favor, if you don't
pay into SS for 5 years( no matter how much you paid in before, You don't qualify for SSDI anymore.

So all I got was SSI. $603 a month in TN this year
and you get medicaid, but no dental coverage under any circumstance

I was making it and paying my car ins until I had a major dental abscess
I had to have 3 extractions and then couldn't pay my car insurance premium
I was canceled.

Of course, as luck goes, I had a fender bender, very minor, still police investigated
I got a ticket for no insurance.

December 14, I have to go before a judge
If i get insurance before then,the down stroke will make me starve the rest
of the month. If I don't I'm really fucked.
Either way, the state will revoke my drivers license and my registration.
and it will cost a huge amount to pay the state to reinstate it.

I need to drive to get to the doctor, drugstore and groceries.

I'm Fucked.

They really go out of their way to hurt the poor in this country

[nicknameless]

15. Thank you for this. I have the same opinion about "volunteerism".

Why were Clinton, etc. preaching about volunteerism, rather than investing in social programs to solve the crises?

They want to throw the burden back onto those with kind and giving hearts, rather than do the right thing by their constituents.
They think there are always bleeding hearts who will step forward and solve the problems that they're to callous to address.

[H2O Man]

16. Nominated.

We need to redefine what our values are, and as a nation, as communities, as families, and as individuals, we need to focus our attention on making those values realities.

[Jcrowley]

17. Dom Helder Camara

As Simone Weil suggested, "Today it is not nearly enough merely to be a saint; but we must have the saintliness demanded by the present moment."

But there was another question in my mind. Why was so much done in remedying the evil instead of avoiding it in the first place? Where were the saints to try to change the social structures, not just to minister to the slaves, but to do away with slavery?

[nofurylike]

18. k&r. vitally important and very well said! thank you Sapphire Blue,

again. more.
:hug:


peace and solidarity, always!

[Sapphire Blue]

19. ...

:hi: :hug:

[nofurylike]

20. thank you

:hi: friend

:hug:

we have so much to do, don't we, Guide Sapphire Blue?

[calimary]

21. Really like that parable. Thanks for posting this, Sapphire Blue.

I think the more of this we see, amongst ourselves, the greater the consciousness-raising among us will be.

Because it IS up to us. As individuals, as communities. And from there, motivating and pushing and insisting that our leaders take note.

Michael Moore has said "you need a permission slip from the poor to get into Heaven." I think a lot of people forget this - or WANT to forget this.

I used to feel that this was an overwhelmingly difficult, near-impossible problem. But then came November 7th. It's OUR 9/11. November 7th CHANGED EVERYTHING. Where there was discouragement, it brought us hope. Where there was fear, it brought us courage. Where there was oppression, it brought us power.

I was one of many here, and beyond, who were fearful. How many threads, just here, did we see that were titled "The Fix Is In!!!" describing real or suspected whiffs voter fraud in the air as the election approached? We were gonna see the nightmare repeat again because the mechanism was in place, and spreading beyond Florida and Ohio. It was going to be snatched away from us and the media would just ride along with the presumed "accountability moment" that bush and friends were going to pass with flying colors because kkkarl rove already knew "THE math."

Well, guess what happened? A tsunami - we who felt overwhelmed - OVERWHELMED the bad guys. We subsequently learned that there were indeed some three million votes that were fucked with in one way or another - suspected as the number the enemy had pre-figured as what would be needed to squeak through to a not-terribly-suspicious victory - that wouldn't make many eyebrows go up. Well, weren't they surprised?!?!? We OUTSHOUTED, OVERWHELMED, and OVERRAN them. SWAMPED them and FLOODED them and WASHED THEM OUT OF WASHINGTON!!! Nobody was more surprised and pleasantly stunned than I was. Probably a lot of others here felt delighted disbelief that the lucky stars had come out on OUR side. Luck - that WE made happen because our side got its act together sufficiently to overpower the bad guys and leave their vote-stealing schemes flattened under the wheels of the bus.

My point? Some of us may not believe that a problem as grave and widespread and urgent as poverty and homelessness is also virtually insurmountable. Too big. Too far beyond our little means or our reach. We're up against forces too powerful and too ever-present. Well, we were, a couple of weeks ago. Or so we thought. And look how that turned out!

November 7th should become our battle-cry buzz phrase, every bit as powerful and motivating as "Remember Katrina!" or "STOP the WAR!" NOVEMBER SEVENTH CHANGED EVERYTHING!!! It proved how powerful, effective, and unstoppable we are when we all put our minds, our hearts, and our energies into something - for the common good. If we packed enough of a punch to knock a large number of bad guys out of power and install OUR OWN in their places, we can move other mountains as well. Mountains like poverty and homelessness and hunger. Starting in our communities, cities, counties, states, and then our entire country. September 11th changed everything for a lot of people, and started us on a national quest straight to Hell. Why not view November 7th as that seminal moment, that seismic event, that changes everything for many of us, and starts us on a national quest to earn our places in Heaven? We've got ourselves "A Moment." Perhaps "The Moment" that September 11th COULD have been, when we all could have pulled together to accomplish something great instead of something fool-hardy, ignorant, and destructive. Let's make use of it.

[Sapphire Blue]

22. Have you seen this post on the CHN 2007 agenda?

Reminder: Vote for Your Top Human Needs Priorities by Monday, Nov 20: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=364x2753451

Time to prepare for the next battle... which should be more successful w/the new Congress :) .

[calimary]

37. Done!

[Jed Dilligan]

23. The problem is, if we all work on social justice,

who is doing the charity? RW organizations like Salvation Army and St. Vincent de Paul. We need to do both... We should be building our base from the REAL bottom up.

[EFerrari]

24. These are not mutually exclusive projects. And there are

many progressive organizations working both sides of the street. Here's one we work with. The folks involved here do both all the time, individually and as a group:

http://www.breadandroses.com/

[Jed Dilligan]

25. Very nice, however

you have to admit the big RW fundie charities are much, much bigger at this point--providing housing and sustenance for hundreds of thousands of people every day. That's the level I'm talking about. There should be a homeless shelter run by a progressive organization in every county in the US, just as today there is a (very unpleasant) one run by a RW group.

[EFerrari]

27. We shouldn't have hundreds of thousands of homeless people.

Here's a national group that is certainly not right wing. They are networked all over the country.

http://www.nationalhomeless.org/

A caveat about size. The American Red Cross is huge and for the last how many years have they been bungling and also involved with one scandal after another? Same with Salvation Army. I wonder if the corruption factor increases the righter your organization goes?

In any case, there are many small and mid-sized groups. They just don't happen to own the media. :)

[Jed Dilligan]

30. Yeah, the National Coalition is big,

but how many mouths do they feed? Your post is actually an example of what I'm talking about. Advocacy and idealism (we "shouldn't" have homeless people, and yet...) where the Christian right is doing hot meals and warm beds. The closest thing on the left is Food not Bombs, and I do applaud their efforts.

[EFerrari]

31. We shouldn't have hundreds of thousands of homeless people.

And you don't know the answer to "how many mouths do they feed?" Or, how many roofs and jobs do they generate? Both questions pertain.

Again, advocacy and idealism don't preclude action. In fact there is an argument that you need all three to be effective. Humor helps, too. :)

[EFerrari]

32. While I'm on this subject, here is another national org

that you probably will never hear about because they work in the background and don't solicit $ from the public. Healthcare for the Homeless. They facilitate healthcare services. We got to go to one of their yearly conferences and you've never met a cooler bunch of people. The ones we met were healthcare workers and social workers keeping clinics and mobile services OPEN all over the country.



http://www.nhchc.org/

[bobbolink]

35. Thanks for the link!!

:thumbsup:

[EFerrari]

36. Welcome to Monday.

:hi:

[Jed Dilligan]

33. Well, I never said they preclude action

Believe me, the big RW charities do plenty of advocacy and hold some pretty strong ideals--just not ones that we like.

"We shouldn't have hundreds of thousands of homeless people." People have been saying that since the early 80s and there's been no improvement--not in the numbers of homeless people or the state of the people nor in the attitude of the public towards them.

The main reason I advocate a serious network of progressive frontline services is that homeless people should have the choice. In most places, especially outside the big cities, the only option for shelter is a place run by homophobic bigots who are elbow-deep in public funds. As in all areas of society we should be offering an alternative--not in lieu of, but in addition to proposing large-scale plans to reform society so that it stops manufacturing these problems.

[bobbolink]

34. Why the hell not? I'm ENJOYING being homeless!

:sarcasm:

And the beat goes on.....

[WinkyDink]

26. Here's my distinction: Charity is hit-or-miss, depending upon the

kindness and wherewithal of strangers. Charity is a virtue which can extend no farther than the reach of the giver. Charity makes beggars of its recipients.

Social justice, OTOH, elevates charity from a virtue to a communal responsibility. It makes its recipients not beggars but fellow citizens whose improved lot improves society.

The former, while admirable and to be encouraged, cannot, in a fair and just society, be allowed to replace the latter.

[Election]

28. I work with poor people a lot through church, and all I can say is AMEN!!!

Conservatives (and some liberals as well) believe that charity should be conducted by private enterprise. So in some areas what you get is a dissuasion to use public services (Food Stamps, HUD) because of complexity/lack of funding/embarassment. Thus, a lot of these people in need go to churches for assistance.

Well, the church's goal may range from getting you just to come to church to praying a prayer of faith to repenting of sin. At any rate, many poor people have learned to say "I believe in Jesus Christ" (when it may not be true) just to get aid. (See Rice Christians)

Now this aid may range from a meal to $40 to $80 dollars on a Sunday, but in general the aid is not going to last consistently more than a month. Why? Because the church members may think that this poor person is probably running a scam, even if he may be actually poor.

So, at any rate, because this poor person is unaware of public services, he is only able to get enough money through begging to eat perhaps once or twice a day, but that's it. (What he may do to maximize his bang to the buck is that he may loiter in a buffet). However, the church members, who may be general laymen, are getting sick and tired of supporting this guy, who is unable to get employment maybe even becuase of lethargy, so they tell him to find a job or go get the aid that is entitled to him by the government, without neccessarily knowing how to go about doing this.

As you can see, the church does a poor job in rehabilitating people to become productive members of society.

[BlooInBloo]

29. (shrug) These questions have been asked since at least the ancient Greeks....

... I guess I'm just failing to understand what is NEW in what this person has submittted to that 2000+ year-old thread.