Congress Out of Touch With America's Volunteer Organizations

Last week I sat in on a teleconference sponsored by the Texas Association of Nonprofit Organizations (TANO) regarding state and federal legislative updates. I work as a policy analyst for a nonprofit organization that exists to end family violence, and a part of my role is to track funding trends that could impact the populations we represent.


One presenter on the TANO call, David Thompson of the National Council of Nonprofits, covered the federal budget and the proposed cuts impacting charitable organizations. Mr. Thompson emphasized the need for nonprofits to communicate to Congress about who they are as community agencies and why money is needed to provide direct services to their target populations; he stated that many members of Congress continue to express beliefs that nonprofits are run by volunteers and do not need funds for staff salaries and employee benefits such as health insurance. Currently, a $1 billion dollar cut has been proposed to the Corporation for National Community Service, which funds programs like Americorps. Congress is likely to approve this deep cut if they are not educated on the fiscal necessities of nonprofit organizations.


In the past I have served as a direct service advocate in various capacities at local nonprofits, including a homeless shelter, family violence shelter, and homeless youth outreach program. I can testify to the fact that social services cannot be consistently provided to the community through a volunteer base. Volunteers are an insufficient source of manpower, essentially because they are unpaid for their offered services. Volunteerism is typically something that Americans participate in after the work day is done and the bills are paid; the average American with a passion for giving may have 3 or 4 hours left in the week to spend in a volunteer position. With the recent Recession, many Americans have taken on a second job, leaving little or no time left for volunteering. Full-time, paid staff positions are the only means by which an agency can consistently provide essential services to clients.


Volunteer programs such as Americorps fill the gap for nonprofits in need of volunteer power; Americorps members are placed in communities in volunteer positions, and they receive a federally subsidized living allowance to sustain them through their term of service. I was introduced to social work by joining Americorps and taking my first position in social services at a homeless shelter in Austin. Without a living allowance, I would not have been able to commit to the 40 hour a week volunteer position, and I may not have continued on to where I am today without the experience I gained from Americorps.  


It is hard to believe that members of Congress could be so lacking in comprehension regarding what it takes fiscally to run a nonprofit. Who are we electing into office, and what is their level of real life experience?? If this is any indication of how ill-informed Congress is, I question their ability to manage a budget at all.


If you would like to find out who represents you in Congress and contact them about why nonprofits in your area need and deserve federal funding in order to keep their doors open, follow the link below:


http://www.fyi.legis.state.tx.us/

Behind The Assault On Planned Parenthood by Ryan Grim, The Huffington Post

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/24/planned-parenthood-funding_n_827886.html 

This blog posted on the Huffington Post’s website by writer Ryan Grim attempts to sort out the truth and fiction behind recent allegations made against Planned Parenthood after a college student, Lila Rose, went undercover as a potential patient to videotape her interactions with Planned Parenthood program staff. Rose sets up scenarios in which she portrays a pregnant underage teen trying to obtain an abortion, and at another clinic she teams up with another actor to portray members of a human trafficking ring. Rose has released her videotapes alleging that Planned Parenthood staff violated the law, and in other instances acted unethically, such as by allegedly pushing a patient to obtain an abortion while discouraging adoption as a viable option.

The videotapes have been promoted and circulated by conservative media as a smear campaign against Planned Parenthood, and of even more concern, Republican leaders have cited the videotapes as just cause for stripping the organization of its federal funding. Republican figures such as Mike Pence of Indiana and Cliff Stearns of Indiana back up Rose’s accusations that Planned Parenthood gave out unlawful information as well as neglected to report knowledge of criminal activity. 

Ryan Grim takes a closer look at these videos, the only ‘evidence’ held forth to support claims of wrongdoing by Planned Parenthood staff. Along with his analysis of the full length videos, he provides readers with a link to the videos to watch and formulate their own opinion: http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/AppletonTranscript.pdf

A full viewing of the videotapes becomes quite telling, exposing Rose’s use of heavy editing and splicing to create the story she wants told, the stance promoted by the Republican agenda. While Planned Parenthood provides a vast array of affordable, much-needed and often life-saving services to women of all ages, the far right narrows these services down to the hot button issues of abortion and sex education in schools. I agree with this blogger’s take on the videotapes; remove Rose’s creative editing and the allegations evaporate.

Will America take a deeper look at the sensationalized materials that grabbed their attention, or will they choose to cling to the propaganda that made headlines and furthered the political goals of one party? I hope for the former, but fear the latter.  I also hope that this author is right about the potentially overwhelming support women will offer in order to keep Planned Parenthood’s doors open; he cites that one in five women have accessed this community clinic for women’s health services, making it a well recognized and established institution for American women. I believe that closing Planned Parenthood’s doors would be an attack on women and their right to affordable healthcare, choice, and privacy; the de-funding of this organization is just one of many legislative tactics this session aimed at stripping women of individual liberties.

Read the post, and you may be concerned enough to get involved yourself. Follow the link below to become a supporter of Planned Parenthood:

http://www.plannedparenthoodaction.org/

A Common Sense Argument for Sustainable Farming

/http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/08/sustainable-farming/

“Fun/depressing fact: It takes the earth 18 months to replenish the amount of resources we use each year. Looked at another way, we’d need 1.5 earths to be sustainable at our current rate of consumption.”

In Mark Bittman’s editorial for The New York Times, Sustainable Farming Can Feed the World?, the above quote really grabbed my attention – just what a good, compelling editorial should do. Why did this quote catch my eye and draw me in? Because it is fact-based, it underscores the topic the author is taking on, and it provides the reader with a reason to care about and listen to the writer’s opinion.

This editorial explores the possible benefits of a conversion from industrial farming to sustainable farming by way of a solutions-based rational. The author’s citing of many global problems that could be alleviated through sustainable farming methods balances out the article; from hunger and obesity to depletion of natural resources and global warming, Mr. Bittman rounds out his argument rather than pushing one particular agenda. Compromise is a present theme, with the author interjecting ideas some adherents are willing to consider but that staunch supporters of the sustainable farming model might rule out, such as the possible need for the continued use of chemical fertilizers in order to meet short-term goals while making the shift towards long-term solutions.

The editorial compels the reader to acknowledge the injustices of a world in which millions live in hunger while fifty percent of food produced is thrown away and millions struggle with the complications of obesity. Knowing that geographic separation from such ethical dilemmas can ease the American conscience, Bittman further emphasizes the threat to our own existence if we continue on. The continued use of resource-guzzling, environmentally destructive industrial farming just won’t cut it; we don’t have 1.5 earths.

Overall, I particularly like the author’s placement of relevant, easy to access links, containing factual information to back up the opinions expressed. Bittman’s basic logic is compelling while uncomplicated, leaving me with food for thought (couldn’t resist!)