Who will help?

In class last night we began a discussion, once again, of how to fix the problems of poverty and segregation in the inner city. Many people living in suburbs, who tend to be white and middle to upper middle class, seem to gain an attitude with their flight of "its not our problem". People that have the financial ability to leave do so, instead of trying to help fix these problems that plague the inner city. If this is the attitude of so many, how can we convince them to stay, to rebuild, or to simply give a helping hand?

I don't know. What I do know, however, is that it is people like Kuruvilla George, the now unemployed VP of Operations at Carraway Hospital. In this week's Birmingham Weekly I read a little blurb that I think deserves much more recognition. The facility is located in a declining neighborhood, much like the inner ring suburbs that we have discussed in class. It was also a hospital dedicated to charity, providing service regardless of one's ability to pay. These two factors are said to have led to the demise of the hosipital, as giving charity and remaining in a poor neighborhood are money losers.

In the last months of Carraway's life, George recognized the problems the hospital, as well as the surrounding area, faced. He knew this hospital provided care to the poor and jobs to many. Instead of fleeing the situation to a better job in a prospering area, which he very well could have done, George decided to help. He bought $9,000 worth of supplies for the hospital out of his own pocket.

While this did not save Carraway Hospital, it is the most refreshing act of dedication and kindness that has come out of Birmingham in a long time. It gives hope that there ARE people who are willing to stay put and sacrifice for the greater good of the community.