Charity of the American People

Americans are "stingy." This was the accusation hurled at the U.S. almost exactly one year ago by Jan England, United Nations Undersecretary for Humanitarian Affairs, immediately after the Asian tsunami disaster.

The circumstances were such at the time: The Bush Administration initially pledged $15 million toward tsunami relief efforts.

After the above remark received considerable worldwise publicity, the U.S. Administration raised its contribution to a more realistic $350 million. But even this larger figure works out to just under $1.20 per American.

This comment that Americans are stingy no doubt expresses the view of many foreign elites, who have come to believe that government is the only true source of goodness and charity.

A distinction should be made here between American government giving and American citizen giving. For example in a given year that Americans privately gave a very gnerous $34 billion overseas, official US foreign aid was $15 billion, less than half as much.

As for the generosity of the American people, the following from a Wall Street Journal editorial speaks volumes:

In the weeks and months that followed the tsunami, American citizens dug deep into their wallets, donating some $1.78 billion to the relief effort in Asia -- dwarfing the contributions of other developed nations. Since October Americans have also contributed $78 million to assist the casualties of the Pakistan earthquake.

The quarter trillion dollars a year that Americans provide to sustain the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, Catholic Charities, the American Cancer Society, their local churches, universities and such is greater than the entire GDP of most countries.

Bill and Melinda Gates have given more dollars to fight AIDS and malaria in Africa than have many nations.

This generosity in money and volunteerism has been a hallmark of American society since its earliest days. Some 150 years ago Alexis de Tocqueville lauded the impulse of Americans (in contrast to Europeans) to set up churches, schools, orphanages, hospitals, homeless shelters and other civic aid organizations throughout the land.

[Includes excerpts of an Editorial in The Wall Street Journal]