Comic Relief: Worst since 2007

Ooh, and Transgender Trend!

Do not give to Comic Relief and have always preferred to give to charities of my choosing as and when I decide (I always give a large donation at Xmas - foodbanks in previous years).

This year, however, spurred on by the knowledge of what CR are doing with the money people give - such as giving to organisations encouraging the medication and mutilation of children - I gave on the day to the Vancouver centre and a dog rescue charity.

I also donated to Vancouver Rape Relief. I've refused to do CR for a while now. Fortunately the DC's school haven't got involved but if they had I wouldn't be supporting it.

Oh yes I remember that.

Male women are def much better than female women. Female women have always been a bit shit really. Good we have this new better sort now.

MeAgainAgain Comic Relief decided to feature a 'Woman of the Week' highlighting 'stunning and brave' women whose 'stunningness and bravery' was under reported and under valued. Their first and, I believe, only 'Woman of the Week' was Lili Elbe the TW the film The Danish Girl was about.

There was a thread on here about it at the time (around November 2018 I think). Comic Relief ignored any and all requests for an explanation as to their choice, nor did they care one iota for how insulting their choice was to many, many women. Then again, with 'stunning and brave' as the sole criteria for choice and the fact that only TW can be 'stunning and brave' their choice was inevitable.

what was the woman of the week thing?

agree with posts saying there are multiple reasons that people are less keen

I donated to Vancouver Rape Relief rather than comic relief. I feel powerless when faced with the onslaught against woman's sex based protections but I can at least choose not to donate to an organisation which lauds Lili Elbe as an inspirational woman and gives financial support to misogynistic transactivism.

Our school charged a pound for non uniform day. My eldest was told that she still would have to pay even if she chose to come in her uniform?! This plus the plastic noses cost me £4.50 for two kids. On the way in and out of school they had money collectors. This really annoys me as we are living on the bread line.

On friday they were asking for the text donation and they were really pushing the £30 donation telling you that it could buy x y z but 30 quid is a lot of money for people to just donate it has got a bit above itself imo

I would never give to comic relief or any of these huge multi charity events. I would much rather give to a single issue charity so I know exactly where the money is going. By it's own definition , 'Comic Relief is a major UK charity, with a vision of a just world, free from poverty', which is fine but not very specific. There are many visions of a just world and people should never be shamed into not contributing to a specific one. I truly feel sorry for parents who are guilt tripped into giving and can only assume that donations are down as many are resisting the pressure.

It will be blamed on the David Lammy/Stacey Dooley 'white saviour' row but while that may be one factor I think there are many others.

The sex abuse scandals and subsequent cover ups of them by major charities.

The realisation by the public that there is a closed shop at the top of these charities whose tentacles reach into the highest levels of Government.

The forced participation of schools in Comic Relief, Children in Need and Sport Relief and the pressure this places on parents and children.

The alternating hectoring and patronising tone of rich celebrities telling people who will never have the kind of money and influence the celebrities have that they MUST donate.

For Comic Relief in particular the debacle around the insulting 'Woman of the Week' which was never satisfactorily explained.

A general feeling of compassion fatigue with the public, there are so many adverts on TV requesting people to just give £3-£10 per month for this charity and that charity.

Probably also a feeling that for all the money raised and spent over decades it has made little impact on bringing about long term permanent change and benefit.

Personally, I don't agree that the so-called independent BBC should broadcast the propaganda fests that are Comic Relief, Children in Need and Sport Relief.

I think these things have become an expensive exercise in self aggrandisement and virtue signalling. The money goes to some dubious organisations.
I prefer to choose which charities I support and I donate to them directly.

Also a charity I volunteered for never bothered trying for a grant from Comic Relief - too difficult (the paperwork!) and we weren't convinced that they would care about our women focus.

Good points raised so far. Am I right in thinking they also have significant cash reserves (so they haven't even spent the money from last time out)?

I haven't given to this or CiN for years. I'm sick of celebs using it to promote themselves it's all so patronising.

I now patreon to Meghan Murphy and Dr Nic at Fair Play for women and when I have enough will also donate to Vancouver Rape Relief.

I'm really pleased that my ds's school sent a text to say that they wouldn't be doing anything for comic relief and the students could choose which charity to donate to. They chose a local rape crisis centre and New Zealand.

My office didn't do anything but that may be because the persons who organise this sort of thing realised compulsory donation fatigue might have set in.We have had so many opportunities recently to donate to charities not of our choosing.

Yup. My donation went to Vancouver rape relief this year. Comic Relief do good work, but if they don’t understand what female means, I have no faith that their gender justice funds will be properly targeted

My children's school didn't do anything for it this year.

There was a call for bakes at work, and I asked for a list of charities, I couldn’t really find anything that assured me the money was not going on ‘right on’ trans charities, I decided against baking for comic Relief. To me it was lack of transparency and lack of trust about where the money would go, knowing what the bbc are like. I bought some cakes and donated that way, but didn’t exactly put myself out with the cost and effort of baking.

Comic Relief will find all sorts of excuses to spin this custard pie in their faces - Brexit, the weather, whatever.

The fact remains that I don't find it funny when grant-making bodies pose a safe-guarding risk to children, through their support of Trans-Affirming projects.

I don't find it funny when a charity involves itself in politics by using hashtags like #genderjustice and the intimidating logo of Transactivism (a variation on three fists inside the symbols for male and female).

I made it my business to tell everyone and anyone that Comic Relief should be starved of donations until there was an improvement in its decision-making

(The image is taken from a Comic Relief Blog Post in 2018)

Not giving to the corporate charity sector any more. My money goes mostly on the women's sector where sex exemptions are being upheld, pro-woman lobbying such as FPFW, or anti-austerity grass roots initiatives local to me.

Anyone wishing to donate to the developing world should pick one of the most bang for buck charities listed here:

www.givewell.org/charities/top-charities

I usually go with the Deworm The World Initiative.

I actually forgot it was on - it didn’t seem as well promoted as other years. I wouldn’t have bought the merchandise because it really just ends up in landfill.

They need a refresh of their fundraising strategy.

Yup, or possibly it’s time to move on from Comic Relief. I totally forgot about it tbh. I’m kiwi and I’m giving all my spare money to that and the Vancouver Rape Crisis at the moment. But I have never liked comic relief tbh

I think it's had its day, because of all the factors Anna listed.
Also it seems to be one of these charities that employs quite a lot of staff on salaries most of us can only dream of. I would rather give my money directly to specific causes rather than leave the sharing out to people I don't trust.