Query about the ARC

[eleanorjane]

I've seen a few Haiti-related posts that seem to imply that donating to the (American?) Red Cross is a bad idea compared with other charities and relief organisations, and I'm curious as to why that is. Not being from America, I haven't heard any particular reports against the ARC, and I'm wondering why they seem to be held in lower regard than I expected.

Anyone able to satisfy my curiosity?

[Cross-posted.]

Comments

[helens78]

Take this with a grain of salt, please, because I cannot for the life of me remember where I heard this or if it is verifiable, but what I recall hearing about the American Red Cross is that its administrative overhead takes a disproportionately large chunk of donations compared to other reputable charities. (Charity Navigator page with graph -- I don't know how big that green wedge should be.)