Dear Ms Young,
I read your article in The Tennessean this morning about how United Way is hurting for cash and how 32 area agencies are scrambling to meet the need for emergency food and shelter services after having received huge cuts in federal aid.
Ms. young, there are some of us who would like to help but cannot in good conscience give to United Way at this time. Let me tell you why. United Way supports an organization that is primarily a liberal political organization rather than a charity.
That organization is the Neighborhood Resource Center. I do not know how much funding they are receiving this year. I have asked United Way but I have not received that information. In 2009 however, NRC received $237,000 in United Way funding.
The Neighborhood Resource Center says this about themselves: "We offer organizing assistance to help community groups build membership, identify common goals, and develop strategies to move their groups ahead. Most neighborhoods face common issues, so the lessons learned in one community can be quickly put to use in another."
They also say they are, "dedicated to assisting Nashville residents in the formation and development of neighborhood-related organizations. NRC assists residents by providing information, leadership training, consulting, and supportive services, as well as by forming collaborative relationships with, and providing support to, institutions that serve neighborhoods."
Those thing are not objectionable but those activities are political activities not charitable ones. To provide those services we have a political arena. Those services can be provided by organizations like the League of Women Voters, and political parties or by an NRC that raises funds as political contributions, instead of charitable contributions.
In practice, NRC trains citizens in understanding zoning and planning issue and the operation of Metro government and how to put pressure on government agencies and elected officials to meet the needs of communities, as seen by NRC and the various community organization with which they work. They also provide training in how to run for Metro Council. Those are not bad things to do, but are clearly political activities, not charitable activities.
The worse offense of NRC is that they are promoting the Contract for the American Dream. The Contract for the American Dream is a major effort to energize the left. It calls for new massive government spending and wealth redistribution. This effort is headed by radical leftist and self-identified Communist, Van Jones and is supported by groups such as Code Pink, Daily Kos and MoveOn.org. For those of us who are of a conservative political persuasion, why should we support United Way, when United Way is supporting an organization that is promoting The Contract for the American Dream?
The Neighborhood Resources Center is funding the salaries of people who do much of their political work under different organizational names. If one looks at how they are connected, The Neighborhood Resource Center either directly or indirectly has strong ties to the Nashville Neighborhood Defense Fund, which endorses candidates for Metro Council, and Neighbors for Progress, an organization that led the fight to support the Mayors effort to destroy the fair grounds.
I hope you can see why as a conservative, I cannot at this time support United Way. In my view United Way should discontinue their funding category "Building Strong Neighborhoods" and should defund The Neighborhood Resource Center. That function and that organization should not be competing with dollars to meet the emergency food and shelter services needs of this community. United Way should defund NRC and reallocate that money to these 32 organizations in need that are providing emergency food and shelter.
Ms Young, I and I am sure many others would like to help meet the need of those agencies who had a funding cut, but cannot do so through United Way. If you could publish a list of the 32 agencies in need of funding, people may want to make a contribution directly to one or more of those agencies.
Ms Young, this is an open letter. I am sending it to my friends and am posting it on my blog and Facebook page. When I receive your reply I will also post it.
Sincerely,
Rod Williams
Below is my contact information.
home 292-8900, cell 509-3900,
Please visit my blog: http://adisgruntledrepublican.blogspot.com
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