The Crisis of American Jewish Philanthropy

Posted by Dan | May 4, 2008 | Category: Jewish Philanthropy |

From the Jerusalem Post…

“Here is something of a reality check about American Jewish finances. They are not what they used to be. True, we have it easier here than in most places. But across the US, the relentless news is about economic woes, the collapse of the mortgage market and home foreclosures. When traditional news broadcasts offer “consumer segments” about saving on your household grocery bill, something is sad and scary in the US.

Shortly before the recent Wall Street and real estate woes sent jitters through philanthropic organizations in the New York area, some local Jewish federations quietly let it be known that they were short on funds and needs were great. For many who are routinely approached by federations, it sounded like the boy who cried wolf.

SHOULD AMERICAN Jews support the Jewish Agency? It is hard to make that case these days in the metro New York area. The main aliya agency seems to be Nefesh b’Nefesh. The free trips on Birthright Israel for college-age kids are due to the largesse of the mega-donors. And here in the New York area, the idea of Jewish education is less about the Sochnut’s offerings than the bank-breaking tuition at any day school.”

Read the complete article here.

updated May 5th: I do not remember the last time a non-political article from the Israeli papers has been picked up so far and wide. And on a Sunday, no less.

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2 Comments so far

  1. arnie draiman
    May 4th, 2008

    | 1:11 pm

    thanks for posting this and asking the questions…not sure i can answer directly, but, i do know this:

    you should (must) only give tzedakah where it will be used wisely, efficiently and effectively. money that is wasted on high overhead costs, high fundraising costs, high salaries/retirement schemes, etc. is wasted tzedakah money.

    and in fact…according to one interpretation, it is actually stealing from the poor people who are the intended recipients. the verse in proverbs (22:22) says: “do not steal from poor people because they are poor”.

    what could you possibly steal from someone who has nothing? well, you can steal what is ‘rightfully’ theirs - the tzedakah money you give. and how do you steal it? by giving to organizations that do not spend it carefully.

    so, be careful. be smart. give wisely.

    arnie draiman
    philanthropic consultant
    http://www.draimanconsulting.com

  2. Dan
    May 4th, 2008

    | 1:54 pm

    Arnie,

    Thanks for posting this. As you well know one of the ways to use tzedakah effectively is with a good dose of transparency. Here in Israel, we’re years and years behind where we should be on this. Hopefully with some of the initiatives underway we’ll soon at least enter the present decade.

    Shavuah tov,
    Dan

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