During the same minute that Terri Schiavo died, complete with full
media coverage, 11 children under the age of 5 also died of starvation,
though with much less public notice.
700 children under the age of 5 died of starvation during the same hour
that Terri died, and over 15,000 children under the age of 5 died of
starvation on the same day that Terri died.
Unlike Terri Schiavo, none of these children were stuck in a bed,
unable to feed themselves. There was no disagreement over whether
their brains functioned or not. There was no disagreement about
whether they smiled at their mom because they were glad to see her or
whether it was only some sort of reflexive action.
Though we can't help all of the tens of millions of kids that will die
this year alone due to poverty, we can help one. We can do
something for at least one child that will make a difference to them
and their family.
You can build a relationship with that kid, or just send the dough and never look back.
We support a few kids through Compassion
International. We've built relationships with them and
with a few of the kids who have graduated from the program, we still
keep in touch. This organization is audited every year by an
outside organization (which doesn't just check the books, but sends
auditors out to the programs to make sure that when Compassion says
"Jane Doe" in Kenya is receiving $x.xx from Compassion, they can
actually verify that Jane Doe really does exist and that she is indeed
receiving that amount of money (in the form of food, education, etc.)).
But Compassion is a Christian program and for those of you who want to
help the starving without proselytizing, there are many other
organizations to choose from.
Children
International appears to be a secular organization (either
that or they're embarrassed about the fact that they're associated with
a religious group. Nothing was posted about it on their "about
us" page that I could see.).
Other organizations that help kids (some with sponsorships programs and
some without - some that are Christian and some that are not):
UNICEF
World Vision
Save the Children
Heifer International
Yes, such a thing doesn't pull in ratings, so the media will neglect it for the sexier stories. If there were some kids, say, organizing a hit squad or something to get food, the news might pay them a bit of attention...
ReplyDeleteTrue. I believe what happened to Schiavo was very wrong because death was imposed on her by others to serve a political agenda. But that does not make the starving of children any less wrong, especially when it is corruption in their countries' governments that causes 99% of it.
ReplyDeleteI think that there comes a point when it is just plain cruel to keep another person alive, and even more cruel to ignore the plight of children starving to death.
ReplyDeleteIn the case of Terri Schiavo, I believe that in their own seperate ways both her husband and her parents were acting out of love for her. But when it comes to starving children I think we all betray the love we are commanded to have, when we forget them even for a moment.