100 Families — #redirectthecheck

tl;dr I’m launching a fundraiser in unofficial support of GiveDirectly’s efforts for addressing the financial impact of COVID-19 in the United States. I currently have secured $30,000 in donation matching. The donation matchers and myself have agreed to match dollar for dollar all donations to GiveDirectly through the end of May. This does not have to be stimulus money. To qualify, send a picture of your donation receipt to kevinwhite1710@gmail.com. If you’d like to pledge matching funds, feel free to email me. If you’d like to learn more about GiveDirectly’s U.S. cash transfer campaign, visit the campaign announcement page to #redirectthecheck. (Last Update: 04/19/2020)

Everybody has their own perception of what growing up in Detroit was like over the past thirty years. I can say that they are probably both very correct and very incorrect. Like any other major city, Detroit had two distinct experiences: the one you heard about in the news and relatively normal life. That’s not to sugar coat what Detroit was (and in some ways, still is). Detroit was really rough for a lot of people. I just happened to live a sheltered enough life to avoid most of the hardships. And when I say sheltered, I mean sheltered. One of my babysitters was the deputy mayor’s daughter. One of my sister’s early childhood friends was the longtime city council president’s granddaughter. I played baseball with an infamous mayor’s kids. There are maybe two better neighborhoods than the neighborhood in which I lived. This all in a city the size of Brooklyn, San Francisco, and Boston combined. I had a very privileged upbringing.

Big Dub, my father, was never one to let my sister and I forget that we were privileged. He would make us volunteer. Whether it was me serving as an altar boy at mass or the family delivering meals to seniors who had difficulties getting their own groceries, he felt it was extremely important that we not forget that we were part of a larger community, one where people needed help: our help. Big Dub did not care if it meant interrupting Saturday morning cartoons, even during a time when Yu-Gi-Oh! and Pokemon were appointment viewing. He didn’t care if it meant missing Michigan football… most of the time. This was a lesson that he as a father felt was essential to teach his children. It’s a lesson that’s stuck with me. I’ve tried to be active in the communities in which I reside, whether it be partnering with other organizations or working on my own projects based on my previous volunteering experiences. It’s also impacted my charitable giving and allowed me to expand my horizons on how I can use what I have to edify and help others.

The world is in the midst of a pandemic that is unlike anything the living generations have ever experienced. As the virus SARS-CoV-2 lands on the shores of each country, it ruthlessly interrogates the foundations of each society: the government, the economy, the social safety net, and the social compact are all thoroughly explored and investigated with each infection. It should not be shocking to any of us that the United States of America and its highly individualistic, hyper-capitalistic, systemically racist society is floundering in the face of disease that cares nothing for nationality, ethnicity, wealth, or class. As I’ve seen from afar and now near the devastation the disease COVID-19 has delivered on the world, I’ve asked myself how I was going to help.

From the start, it’s been clear that the United States government is going to have to provide economic stimulus to its residents in order to convince them to stay home, slow the rate of infection, and give our health system and its professionals a fighting chance in this pandemic. I knew that if I were somehow to receive a check that I would give it away. But how could I convince others with means to do the same? As I prayed and meditated, I was reminded of an organization I donate to monthly, GiveDirectly. GiveDirectly is a non-profit organization that provides cash transfers to the extreme poor. They base their work on the principles of effective altruism, a philosophy that believes that any philanthropic effort should try to maximize the improvement of its targets’ quality of life per unit of money and/or time. I decided that I would reach out to the organization and ask if they would consider doing a special cash transfer program in the United States so that those who received stimulus but didn’t need some portion of it could give it away to the most vulnerable in this country. As I went to the website to grab the contact info, I immediately saw that they already crafted a program for doing this exact thing in the United States. I literally jumped out of my computer chair overjoyed and overwhelmed that this problem was identified and being addressed. After completing the classic Kevin contradiction of praising the Lord and launching some profane exclamations, I knew what had to happen next: I had to activate my network. That is, you, the reader.

What was Big Dub trying to teach me through all the volunteer work? When God blesses you, you bring people along. You give back. You lift others up and show that we are all capable of coming together as a community and supporting the marginalized. While I’d love for everyone to have a heart for the most vulnerable in our society all the time, it is only now that I feel comfortable imposing on all of you the yearning of my heart. In many ways, this pandemic is the darkest hour for the most vulnerable in the United States. How will they feed their kids breakfast and lunch now that school is closed? How will these same kids be educated for the rest of the year when they have to work? Will they lose their job? How will they pay their rent or mortgage? Will they be able to afford treatment if they get infected? Who will take care of their children if they contract COVID-19? Who is paying the medical bills for a sick spouse if they can’t work? I hear about these circumstances and it breaks my heart.

Thus, I’m launching my own supplemental fundraiser to help 100 families in unofficial support of GiveDirectly’s efforts. Here’s how it works. I currently have fundraised $30,000 worth of matching pledges (note: I will be updating these numbers as I receive confirmation of people who are willing to match donations). The goal is to provide 100 households with financial assistance through GiveDirectly so we can reduce stress and improve both physical and mental health. We are matching dollar for dollar all donations to GiveDirectly through the end of May, up to the amount of matching pledges I’m able to raise. In order to qualify for a matching pledge, a donor must send a photo of their GiveDirectly confirmation to kevinwhite1710@gmail.com with the email subject “COVID-19 Community Assistance.” All of this will be on top of my own $1,000 donation to GiveDirectly’s cause. (Edited on 04/19/2020)

I know this is a large imposition. Many of you reading this could use that money for legitimate purposes: providing a buffer for rent, paying down some debt, or doing some much needed maintenance. Forty percent of Americans can’t afford an emergency of $1000 or more. I know what I’m asking is hard. But I believe that if we’re going to make it through this pandemic we’re going to have to stop extending our toilet paper supply and extend helping hands. All I ask is that you thoughtfully consider contributing to this endeavor. If this campaign isn’t for you, please look for other opportunities for which you have a greater affinity. If you want to learn more about GiveDirectly’s response to the pandemic in the U.S., please click this link. If you would like to know more about my giving philosophy, feel free to read this blog post. We can make it if we band together selflessly as a community. Wash your hands. Don’t touch your face. Avoid other humans. Let’s go.