Back in the 1980s I worked as a secretary to a major partner of a major Wall Street law firm. The partner was one of the few woman partners in the firm. She had married into major wealth which enabled me to get a peek into the personal lives of the wealthy.
There were various things in her lifestyle that were new to me being as I grew up in a lower middle class family outside of NYC. And though I was hired to be a legal secretary the majority of my time was spent on personal stuff for her. I haven't really thought about those years lately until reading a NY Times Article today about the wealthy and their charitable givings.
The bulk of her family's charitable contributions were given for cultural purposes, the big ones being Merce Cunningham Dance Foundation, The Metropolitan Museum of Art and Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival plus the college she and her husband attended, Yale. Now don't get me wrong, there are great cultural organizations deserving of contributions and people are free to give to any organization they choose. But I wasn't surprised to read in this article that
New Yorkers give lavishly. According to the Chronicle of Philanthropy, the metropolitan area ranks highest among cities in terms of dollar sum (though not in percentage of income) given to charity. The Upper East Side’s 10021 ZIP code was responsible for $459 million in charitable donations in 2008, making it the country’s most magnanimous in terms of money allocated.
I knew this was true. But in those days back in the 1980s the disconnect I felt was that at the same time my own meager donations were given to organizations where I sponsored a child, environmental groups, St. Judes, and my local pet shelter.
And yet if we look at the Chronicle’s ranking of individual donations of $1 million or more made in New York State so far this year, we see very little money going to causes aimed at enriching the lives of the less fortunate.
and
Looking at the top 49 gifts on the Chronicle’s list, not one went to support social services explicitly.
How do we align this with the Republican ideology that people will pick up the slack in helping others rather than having the government help. We can't.
I asked Ms. Slutsky (article refers to Lorie A. Slutsky, chief executive of the New York Community Trust, a nearly-100-year-old organization that administers charitable giving for the wealthy), who has taken donors to impoverished parts of the city in the hope of widening their charitable scope beyond the institutions favored on the Upper East Side, what she thought of the idea that charity could repair potentially bigger holes in the social safety net. “I always say to people, name one of the richest people you can think of,” she told me. “Let’s say Mike Bloomberg. Even if he gave away every penny he had — $22 billion — that would be a drop in the bucket. That’s basically New York City’s public school budget for one year.”
This naive Republican concept is right up there with believing corporations will regulate themselves properly, therefore, we don't need government regulations. Or the naive idea that tax cuts for 'job creators' will create more jobs.
Again, just to reiterate, people can give to whatever organizations they choose its their money. But IMHO, a little more awareness of looking out for the truly needy would certainly do a lot more good. And don't get me started on Romney and his millions going to his church.