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The President Goes Shopping: What’s the Bigger Picture?
I hope President Obama was not trying to surprise his wife and daughters with the gifts he brought for them at the Gap when in New York earlier this week. We all know the point wasn’t the gifts, but rather his desire to highlight the increase in wages that the Gap has committed to paying entry-level workers. This certainly was a good thing to do. It’s encouraging that some of the lowest paid workers will be getting a moderate increase. A couple thoughts came to mind. When I checked around, I discovered that our Catholic Charities agencies were already paying the increased new minimum to their entry-level staff and were…
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Bangladesh: A Step Forward Compensating Victims of Garment Factory Tragedies
Read the recent Wall Street Journal article. When I was in Bangladesh in early December 2013, the issue of compensation for victims of the fire and building collapse tragedies was one of the issues in the forefront. (The other major issues were building safety and working conditions going forward.) Adequate compensation for workers who were disabled and family members whose breadwinners had died was sought. We have insurance and other compensation mechanisms in place in the United States. These are not in place in Bangladesh. Therefore the establishment of this victims fund and the initial contributions to it are major steps forward. Progress does not come easy or all at once,…
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Pope Francis & Atheists & Catholic Charities
Pope Francis’ recent talk about the how the Blood of Christ has redeemed us all – including atheists struck a chord with the world – and with me in a particular way. People often have asked me if Catholic Charities helps “non-Catholics.” At first this bothered me because Catholic Charities for as long as I can remember and much beyond has always helped people regardless of their religion. I was a little frustrated that after all these years people would still ask. But then I realized we must not have been doing a good enough job in making sure people knew this fact. So now in all material we put…
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Rome Mission with UJA FED of NY: Papal Audience
The President of the UJA FED of NY, Alisa Doctoroff, along with 20 leaders of the federation participated in Wednesday’s Papal Audience as special guests of the Vatican’s Secretary of State. Alisa Doctoroff spoke to Pope Francis of the strong collaboration with Catholic Charities in New York on behalf of the poor – a central concern of both the Jewish and Catholic communities. Pope Francis spoke of the lasting importance of charity in his remarks to the audience in St. Peter’s Square. Pope Francis spent considerable time walking among those gathered – especially those in wheelchairs and their families. The amount of time he spent personally greeting individuals attending the…