American Red Cross: Stealing Your Donation Money

When to it comes to charities people need to be aware of where exactly their money is going. For example, did you know that most charities only have 50% or less of the donated money going to the people it is claiming to help. The rest supposedly go to operating costs, salaries for workers or supplies. Now, obviously some money needs to go for these items but I find it ridiculous when I hear that 25% of the money ends up going to where it is intended. The American Red Cross may be the biggest culprit in their handling of people's donations. It has been reported that less than 10% of donations received end up going to the victims it supposedly is helping. Whatever happened to the old American Red Cross that actually helped people through hard times, where you knew your money was going to help someone, and where you felt secure in donating to. Times have definitely changed this organization and it has only been for the worse.

One of the biggest problems plagueing the Red Cross has been thefts and "misplaced" donations throughout the organization. Americans ended up donating billions of dollars to the organization during hurricane Katrina and most of this money was never handed out to those that needed it the most. Instead, the workers at the Red Cross were too busy padding their own pockets. There were several arrests around this time with employees of the Red Cross but it did not even start to address the problems. One of the most disturbing signs that the organization needs reform is that Kuwait donated 25 million dollars to the victims of Katrina but the Red Cross's board of directors admitted that none of this money went to anyone as it was all used for administration costs associated with the charity. The victims of Katrina have not been alone though in criticizing the Red Cross. Many people have claimed over the years that they cannot get the help they need from the organization and are often put on waiting lists for housing, clothing, and other basic needs only to never hear back from them.

It is now time for our government to do something about this organization and get it revamped from the top down. Every watch group in the USA who follows the Red Cross has been calling for this for some time now. Even employees of the Red Cross talk about the dishonor that the organization has fallen into. Reports of family members put into high positions that essentially are nothing but a title, hiring non-qualified employees and numerous thefts are some of the common complaints heard from employees of the Red Cross. Some employees even said that bags of donation money will just disappear without anybody knowing where they went. How can our government just sit back and let this continue? Congress needs to get its act in gear and at least put some monitoring on where the money is going. Lets get the American Red Cross back to where it should be--helping Americans in need!

Sources:

CNN News Story about American Red Cross