Are Billionaires Charitable, or Do We Just Like to Complain?

Everyone likes to be charitable from time to time, especially around Christmas, but billionaires tend to get a lot of attention and scrutiny about their donations. Is it fair? Jeff Bezos in 2019 donated 98.5 million dollars to help the homeless. His net worth as of writing this is 241.1 billion USD which equates to 0.041% (0.00041) of his net worth. For an apples to apples comparison the average Canadian's net worth is $519,700 which would be like donating $213.08 to the homeless. A bit of money but not extremely charitable at all. If you look at the picture below yes, if you compare to income of $50,000 that would equant to $20.5 (he is worth a lot more now (ratios))     

  

Now I don't know about you but donating $20.5 or even $213 doesn't seem like that much, yet Jeff Bezos gets news articles published about his tiny donations. But then again do we just like to complain about the rich and powerful or do we donate ourselves? 

Actually the poor are extremely charitable in comparison to the rich. Studies show that those with more wealth give less proportionally both of their actual money and time volunteering or food and clothing donations. Those with less, realize how much a donation can mean it would seem.   

Percentage of Income Donated

Lower-Income Households:

Donate 3% to 6% of their income on average.

In some studies, households earning less than $25,000 per year donate 7% to 10% of their income, especially in communities with strong religious or cultural giving traditions.

Middle-Income Households:

Donate 2% to 4% of their income.

Wealthy Households:

Donate 1% to 2% of their income, on average.

Are We Any Better?

This got me thinking as to why, and there are lots of reasons including lack of empathy and social connection but I think that we also suffer from the same lack of empathy and social connection. I am not trying to defend their lack of charity but simply trying to help explain it.  Thinking about third world countries for a second. There are multiple countries where citizens live on dollars a day ($2.15 on average or $784.75 annually). 

To them we must feel like the 1%, or the ultra wealthy. We care about those living in poverty yet most of us don't do anything or much to elevate the suffering. We could donate $1000 to someone in extreme poverty and completely change their life and the life of their children. $1000 would be 1.27x their yearly income or equivalent to someone handing you a cheque for $63,500 if you make $50,000 a year. It would be enough to pay off your debts or finally buy a home or simply kick start your retirement fund. We all have the power to give life changing wealth like Jeff Bezos yet we don't. 

Our Own Bubble

We live in a “cost-of-living crisis.” Rising housing costs, inflation, and financial uncertainty make us feel like we have less and less to give. Just as billionaires can live in their cushy bubble, insulated from the struggles of everyday people, we too live in a bubble—shielded from the suffering of millions around the world.

We may care about poverty wages or exploitative labor in far-off countries, but the truth is, we still buy Shein clothes or Temu products. As long as the goods keep flowing and life feels expensive, we rarely pause to donate a life-changing amount to those in need.

Jeff Bezos’ tiny donation might not impress us, but it does highlight something important: how little it takes to change someone’s life. Instead of focusing on what billionaires aren’t doing, we can turn the mirror on ourselves. We can focus on what we can control and try to make the world a little bit better as inequality is not getting solved anytime soon. 

Give Directly

If you would like to donate directly to someone living in poverty check out Give Directly. They use mobile phones to directly send money to those who are living in extreme poverty. The money has no strings attached meaning they can spend it on what they need. 

Check out this video on how it works: YouTube Link    

Maybe you have some sympathy for those in third world countries just like billionaires have some sympathy for us, but at the end of the day, we just don't care enough to donate significant amounts. It might be out of sight out of mind. We don't see the pain and suffering of millions of people, so we continue living our lives. I am sure billionaires can keep themselves in an incredibly cushy bubble far away from poverty or even normal waged citizens. 

It’s easy to criticize the ultra-wealthy, but let’s not lose sight of our own opportunities to help others. We may not solve systemic inequality overnight, but we can be part of the change. Even small actions matter—especially to the person whose life you might transform.

"Be the change you want to see in the world." - Mahatma Gandhi

If you found this helpful and would like help budgeting or investing please email me at taylormckeecoaching@gmail.com