Previous |
Next Are Education Charities and Donors Doing Enough to Improve Schools? |
February 4, 2009, 12:21 PM ET
Getting Asian Americans to Give More to Charity
Should South Asian Americans give more money to American charities?
Sudhir Venkatesh, a professor of sociology at Columbia University, has posed that question — and others — to three prominent South Asian Americans as part of a week-long feature on The South Asian Philanthropy Project, a blog that focuses on promoting philanthropy among Asian Americans.
The answer was a resounding yes.
While many South Asian Americans donate to cultural causes such as South Asian Youth Action in New York and South Asian Americans Leading Together in Takoma Park, Md., South Asian Youth Action founder Sayu Bhojwani writes their philanthropy should also include institutions that are not tied to South Asian American culture.
“Only as donors and board members of organizations as diverse as the New York City Opera, Lincoln Center, Catholic Charities and United Neighborhood Houses, can South Asians help to shape the institutions of America into more realistic depictions of the American public they seek to serve and the American culture they aim to represent,” Ms. Bhojwani writes.
Another writer, Aly Kassam-Remtulla, writes that South Asian Americans should model their efforts on American Jewish philanthropy.
“An overarching lesson from Jewish philanthropy is the pluralism that exists within the sector,” Mr. Kassam-Remtulla writes. “Some Jews give largely or exclusively to Israel, others support Jews in America, and many support nonprofits with no Jewish focus. A number of Jewish foundations do all three. I think this model is one that the South Asian community should adopt, especially given the diversity of its backgrounds and interests.”
Add Your Comment
Commenting is closed.