Student questions motivations behind charity

posted in: Opinion | 0

October was Breast Cancer Awareness month, which likely caused more people to talk or at least think about a cause that they normally would not. It is important to give issues such as breast cancer a platform to educate people about the topic, but there is a problem with dedicating a specific month, week or even day to a particular cause.

By labeling something as “Breast Cancer Awareness month,” for example, it promotes contribution or education of the cause only for that allotted time. The problem is these causes are important during the whole year, not just when it is convenient or popular to care about it.

While this is not true for everyone, some people will only focus on the topic during its designated time of the year and use their participation as an excuse to disregard the issue throughout the rest of the year. It could be argued that the motivation behind a person’s donation or discussion of the issue is not important as long as the cause is getting the attention it deserves.

Who cares if someone is only posting a reminder about getting a mammogram on social media because it is Breast Cancer Awareness month? However, it seems almost insulting to those who live with the issue everyday of the year to only care about the cause when it is socially acceptable or popular.

While people cannot be forced into caring about something, it is upsetting to think that some people will only pay attention to an issue when society tells them to through designated times and events.There is also the problem of deciding what causes are deemed important enough to get their own time of the year.

It seems unfair that the value of a cause can be based off of which one has the most promotional funding and is therefore more prominent in society. Maybe instead of encouraging the awareness of a cause only once a year, organizations should try frequent reminders throughout the year.

This would continue to enable people to only care about something when society tells them to, but at least this way the issue would get attention throughout the year as opposed to one mass input of attention and then little to no awareness the rest of the time.

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