What To Do With All Those Statistics

So now what do we do with all of these starvation statistics??

We see these statistics all the time. I presented a summary of them in the previous post. These are much more than simply statistics; they are facts that we all know. This many kids die every hour. This many million people live without adequate food everyday. This many countries are suffering from starvation. So, again, what are we supposed to do about all of these statistics? Why do we share these statistics so much?

I would offer two thoughts. First, there are general reasons why we share these statistics so much that affect each and every person. And, second, there are specific things that we need to do because of these statistics that hopefully will affect each and every person.

We share these statistics for the following reasons and to accomplish the following things:
1) For the general public. These statistics let the general public know that there is a problem and the scope of the problem. They lay the framework. Even though a person might not be an activist, it is important for people to be aware of what is going on in the world. These statistics serve to show people that there are injustices and suffering in our world, and hopefully it will cause them to remember and help.
2) For the occasional supporter. These statistics show the needs of people in the world. They do more than just lay a framework, they also highlight an obvious need. When people see these statistics, some will be led to help by the giving of their resources. These statistics provide the initial fuel to spur someone on to engage in supporting those suffering from starvation.
3) For the activist and worker. We need to know how many are starving, where they are, and what they need. To begin, we must have the information. We must have these statistics so that the people fighting in this effort know what to do and how much and where.
So what are we supposed to do with these statistics once they accomplish what they set out to do? Here should be our response to these statistics.

1) Hope. I know - people are dying. I know - this is a huge problem. I know. Trust me, I know. But have you thought about this: What if we didn’t know about this problem? What if the same number of people were dying each day, but we had no idea? These statistics give us hope. These statistics show that we recognize the problem. We have identified this problem. We are aware of it. And because we are aware of it, we cannot turn our backs on it. There is hope in these statistics.
2) Status. Because of these statistics, we know what we are up against. We know the size of the battle that we need to fight. We know when we are winning and we know when we are losing. We know when we need to fight harder and smarter, and we know when what we are doing is working. We can both track our progress and hold each other accountable. By defining the problem, we have a better chance at defeating it.
3) Invitation. These statistics should not be a report of how badly you have been doing at saving the world. They should not be a guilty reminder of all the things that you should have been doing to help these starving African children. But instead, we should view these statistics as an invitation – an invitation to make the future better for people in our world community. It shouldn’t be a condescending report of how badly Americans have done at helping over the years, but it should be an invitation to join today in the fight to make the future better for those suffering from starvation.

Starvation statistics should not be a guilt-tool that is wielded towards every American man and woman who eats three square meals a day. Starvation statistics should not be used to downgrade the pride of African people and their children. Starvation statistics should not make us feel like there is nothing that we can do and nothing that can be done. Starvation statistics shouldn’t make you turn a deaf ear and a blind eye in frustration because of the selfish motives from which they are sometimes shared.

No.

We should show these statistics – I show these statistics – to define the fight ahead and give us and them hope that there is an end – and end that we are working towards together. You should view these statistics as an invitation – an invitation for you to join in this fight against starvation and make the future brighter for our world community.