Charity is one of the most noble offerings an entity can present to someone in need. With our country, the United States being the most rich nation in history, there is plenty of charitable initiatives to help the less fortunate. But are these food stamps, checks, and temporary fixes enough to solve the problems many face today? Such forms of charity are beginning to be considered by many to be “bandaid” fixes or topical resolutions. According to a Philanthropy Roundtable article, some are calling for charitable initiatives to take the form of jobs.
“Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime.” This age-old saying that encompasses the driving thought behind this charitable option. Virtues of work within America are what built each generation up to be better than the one prior. The pursuit of fiduciary betterment as well as a sense of personal fulfillment has driven millions of Americans over the years to prosper. When the drive to work has been lost and dependency grows on charity, a part of the American culture is lost to the alternatives.
Between the ages of 18 and 64, 26 million people were below the poverty line last year and 66% of that number never held a job for at least one of the 52 weeks of the year. Going to work and providing jobs for these people is the first step to empowering them to climb out of the hole of poverty.
Apart from financial stability, a also bring a sense of self worth and contribution to a cause bigger than oneself. Work offers important structures for every life, whether it be setting the time we all wake up, or rationing out the time we take to enjoy ourselves. Working even incentivizes us to save for retirement by offering contribution to 401(k) plans.
The list of benefits are a mile long when a person is offered a job in place of a charitable bandaid. To read the original and entire article, please click here.