Charities like Rotary become addicted to greed
Love of money betrays the cause
Well meaning people have fallen behind the times and get stuck because the money is too good. It doesn’t have to be that way with Rotary on PEI and MDA don’t have to abuse children either. But money is a powerful drug.
The protests against Jerry Lewis and his MD Telethon by disability activists are typical of a charity gone wrong. The same thing is happening on PEI with the abuse of disabled children by Rotary, Easter Seals and CBC Charlottetown.
On PEI, Rotary has been raising money with an Easter Seals Ambassador for decades. Same story – old men have been running it the same old way and they aren’t going to change.
You could do a non-offensive Easter Seals Telethon. It would require more care in how the young Ambassador is treated during and after the event. Rotary resists the change because they are like the MDA, addicted to the money.
The Telethon was at risk of being canceled 3 or 4 years ago. When Disability Alert started stirring up public awareness of the disabled on PEI, they got a little burst of money. Would they consider changing? No, Rotary had been doing it this way for 50 years and that’s the way it will be.
Rotary has little concern for the past children who were ambassadors. Just trot out the little crippled kid in his monkey suit, ask him cute but simple questions – he is simple don’t you know. All disabled people are simple. Talk slowly to them. It’s demeaning.
For the little tyke, he or she hasn’t had this much attention in their whole life. For several months people are taking them here and there. They become exhausted but soldier on.
Somewhere about June, the little fellow or girl will wake up one morning and it will be all over. No more dinners. No more meetings. No more Rotarians or nice adults smiling at them.
And the child will wonder and develop a lonely feeling inside. Am I no good anymore? Will they ever like me again? Why doesn’t Rotary pick me up?
As they get older, a cynicism will build – I was used by Rotary to make money for them. These are the exact thoughts and statements from past ambassadors. Rotarians don’t care. A report is given and next year Rotary calls QEH Physical Medicine looking for a new child.
You can stop it by refusing to attend the telethon and do something positive. If the money dries up only slightly, CBC will cut and run since they are only looking for publicity and don’t care for disability issues per se.
Jerry Lewis Telethon
When the Muscular Dystrophy Association started fund raising with Jerry Lewis decades ago standards were different. We were called crippled children back then. We weren’t expected to grow up, get jobs, have sex and children.
I’m not sure why. Does one bodily defect mean everything is broken? Fund raisers needed celebrities and the more flamboyant the more money was raised. Hence Jerry Lewis as host.
Over the decades, like some aging prize fighter Jerry turned on the children. He started saying mean things on the show and demeaning them. The MDA turned a blind eye because they liked the millions Jerry raised. For the MDA, money became their addiction -cocaine, cocaine so sweet on my brain, got to get me some cocaine. Now adults with disabilities are saying enough is enough.
Protesters with Disabilities Confront OSCAR Chief Over Decision to Honor Jerry Lewis. The OSCARS represent the establishment. They don’t get it. Why don’t you like Jerry Lewis? Because he’s gross. He takes away the dignity of the disabled.
How to help the disabled on PEI
1. Got a stamp? Send Premier Ghiz a letter and ask him to put the additional $10 million the PEI Disability Support Program needs to fund the 4,300 Islanders without a wheelchair or other assistive device.
Premier Robert Ghiz
Province of Prince Edward Island
P.O. Box 2000
Charlottetown, PEI C1A 7N8
2. Still got some money? Send a cheque to Camp Gencheff directly. They run a superb summer camp for children with disabilities and they treat them with respect.
Camp Gencheff
PO Box 412
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island C1A 7K7
The rest of the story
CBC freak show about to begin, get a ring-side seat
Easter Seals and cult of the cute crippled child
Easter Seals and Rotary abusing children with disabilities Part 2
5 Responses to 'Charities like Rotary become addicted to greed'
Starting the red carpet parade…wonder how the pity man will appear tonight. What a disgrace! He has no right to accept ANYTHING that smacks of “humantarian”…PLEASE define “humantarian” for me! Maybe the Academy should look it up in the dictionary BEFORE they hand that award out to Jerry Lewis! Maggie
Maggie
22 Feb 09 at 8:09 pm
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Accessibility News International
23 Feb 09 at 12:01 pm
Well meaning groups have fallen behind the times and get stuck because the money is too good? Never! Unfortunately, this is indeed a very true statement. It is not only the Rotary Club that is guilty of this affliction, but the Cymbria Lions Club is as well. They use the “good of the community” and the “philanthropic work that they apparently do” and “better ways to invest taxpayers’ dollars” and “what the community really wants” to pull at people’s heart strings like the Rotary uses “crippled children”. We should be questioning many of their so-called claims, in particular how they define the word “community”, but also how they interpret their Charter and Purposes and Ethics. Indeed, money is a powerful drug. For the Lions, money became their addiction-cocaine, cocaine so sweet on my brain, got to get me some cocaine. Like the Rotary Clubs, old men have been running it for that long and they pass it down without much change to younger men. One has to be INVITED to become a Lion after all; it is apparently such a privilege that they couldn’t let just any riff-raff in and corrupt the cult with new ideas or an open mind. Who know, if they opened the doors, they might risk letting some French-lovers into the fold or other such frighteningly enlighten individuals. The old timers and Lion Tamers meet twice a month and veto any chance for modernization. Unlike Rotary, they haven’t had such an expanse of time for their addiction to take root, but how long does it take anyway? Some say it can happen with a single use. Perhaps that first cheque that was cut was enough for a life-long addiction. Indeed, the Cymbria Lions are abusing little French children like the Rotary is abusing little children with physical disabilities. Both are disgusting behaviours exhibited by men who should be held to task. Like the Rotary has no concern for the children, past children who were ambassadors, the Lions have no concern for the children, the past children who were denied their right to have access to their language and their culture. Rotary and Lions have to stop using children to feed their own egos (at best-and here’s hoping that’s all they are feeding … unless of course, its the hungry among us. Let’s keep in mind that one can hunger for more than just food. One can hunger for access to their rights and for respect as well.) It’s time the real majority stood up and said “enough is enough—stop using our children to your personal ends. Deplorable and shameful. And a just society shouldn’t accept it.
I rest my case for now.
Offended
27 Feb 09 at 9:43 pm
It is disgusting that the Rotary Club would be associated with what has basically become a Parade of Gimps of sorts.
A bunch of self important Rotarians think they are doing hell and all supposedly helping a few handicapp children. After the Parade is over these same self important important business people can continue with their robbing and pilaging of their customers and of the Island in general.
It is like a Catholic who goes and commits murder or adultery or molests an altar boy than goes to confession and all is supposedly forgiven.
The same is true with the Rotarians rape and pillage and than give a few bucks and parade a few handicapp kids around the island and get everyone else to pay and share in their guilt.
DISGUSTING and the Rotarians should be ashamed of themselves.
Scott
28 Mar 10 at 1:04 pm
What’s apparent when you are behind the scenes, like I was, is that they are quite cynical about it. They want the “crippled child” motif, they don’t want the child. They don’t like people with disabilities. When I started to advocate for Islanders with disabilities, they tried a whole series of tricks to get me to stop. One week, they made me sit at a table by myself. It was quite childish. There are some good people in Rotary; however, it largely composed of people who have learned to profit on the low wages and slave labour of others.
Stephen Pate
28 Mar 10 at 3:07 pm