During a time of panic and devastation, the last thing on anyone’s mind is scoring that awesome online deal from American Apparel. Nevertheless, American Apparel thought that consumers were looking to do a little retail therapy on the heels of Hurricane Sandy by sending out emails about free shipping and a “SandySale,” to the areas that were hit by the superstorm.
It is apparent that the almighty dollar is still the first thing that comes to mind when tragedy hits — not the well-being of fellow citizens. Revenue might not be as high after a disaster, as the economy tries to pick itself up and online shopping may come to a lull. Instead of looking out for No. 1, retailers should use their power to help those in need — those who have lost everything.
Why not encourage other customers to help by giving donations? Why don’t retailers start food or clothing drives? With the power and influence that retailers have, they could urge their unaffected customers to help those in need.
Helping those in need doesn’t have to occur on a national scale, either. On a local level, many Phoenix residents don’t have even basic necessities. With more than 20 shelters in the Phoenix area, there are so many ways we can help those in need in our own backyard.
For college students who are worrying about pinching every penny, there are other ways to help those less fortunate.
For starters, Little Red Wagon, a nonprofit organization, will be holding a backpack drive on the Tempe, Downtown and Polytechnic campuses on Nov. 2 to help homeless youth at the Tumbleweed Center for Youth Development.
The holiday season is now descending upon us and many churches have food banks that offer free food to those in need. Find a local church and drop off those cans of corn and string beans that have been sitting in your pantry for the last month.
If you’re filling up your closet with the new fall trends, make a pile of last seasons garb and donate it to a local shelter.
When people hear about donating, many think that money is the be-all, end-all to donation and charity.
That doesn’t have to be the case. Time is also a valuable thing to donate. Donate your time to a local shelter or hospital.
In this time where many across the country are hurting and have to find a way to re-establish themselves, starting up you own food, toy or clothing drive can make a difference. We attend a university with more than 70,000 students. If we all donated one item to a local charity or nonprofit organization, more than 70,000 people would be touched.
Instead of focusing on making money this way or that, let’s try to advance our society and those that have been hit by disasters without trying to advance our own wallets.
Reach the columnist at nrmirand@asu.edu or follow her at @natalieroxann
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